Pleasant Conversation
by Littlestar.2011
Summary: You'd be pretty pissed too if your school just got shot up, your mom just committed suicide, and the only convenient person to talk to is the Joker who, lets be honest, does nothing but poke fun at you. You'd snap, too. Bad at summaries. Joker/OC
1. How is She?

The Joker sat alone in his cage. He had tried to make pleasant conversation with passing officers, but they had simply brushed him off and walked away – mumbling about riots and paperwork and such – so he would sigh and sit back against the bars of his prison and hum lightly to himself. Jim Gordon walked in then, haggard and tired looking, mumbling about riots and paperwork and such. The Joker tried to ask what was wrong, Commissioner Gordon brushed him off and stalked over to the lounge and got some coffee. The Joker sighed again and began to hum lightly to himself. Jim Gordon walked in again, dragging a chair behind him. He sighed and sat down next to the cage that contained the deranged maniac.

"Long night Commissioner?" the Joker asked. Jim Gordon looked at him and sighed.

"Long day, too" he mumbled. He looked at the black coffee in his hands and leaned back in his seat.

There was silence again as Jim Gordon drank his coffee and kept an eye on the Joker. The silence was suddenly broken when Robert Maxwell Webber trudged into room, haggard and tired looking. Jim Gordon stood up and nearly dropped his empty cup.

"How is she?" he asked. Robert Webber looked wearily at Jim Gordon and sighed.

"She hasn't said a word to anyone, not even the nurses," he grumbled, "and they see her more than I do!"

Jim Gordon sighed, set down his cup, and walked over to the lounge to get another chair. The Joker, meanwhile, sat staring at the pair wondering, 'What the hell are they talkin' about?' Jim Gordon came back and set the chair he had retrieved for poor Robert Webber in front of his own.

"You want coffee?" Jim asked.

"I do..." the Joker said.

"Shut up," Jim said. The Joker shrugged and went back to bobbing his head and humming to himself.

"I'll get it," Robert said. He trudged over to the lounge and got himself some coffee, sipping it as he sat down again.

Robert Maxwell Webber was a good man. He had been in the force for over seven years now, doing whatever Jim Gordon told him to do and listening to everyone complain about having the Joker in the station all the while. Robert was tall. About six feet, two inches tall and in good shape for a man his age – his age being 42 – and had thinning brown hair like his long dead fathers. His eyes were his mothers, a wonderful, enchanting shade of light blue. As Robert sat, he looked over at the Joker.

"When are you going to leave?" he asked. The Joker thought a moment and finally came to a conclusion.

"Just as soon as everyone else in here is as crazy as I am," he said with a toothy grin.

"Won't be to long now," Jim grumbled under his breath.

"Thats what I'm counting on," the Joker said, smiling again.

Jim Gordon shook his head and looked at Robert Webber again, "What happened?," he whispered,"You never gave me all the details. I wasn't there, I was to busy lookin' for him," Jim nodded towards the Joker, who gave them both a little wave.

"You know what happened," Robert mumbled. "They told you. I know they did."

"All I got out of it was that there was a school shooting," Jim said, "said it was just Columbine all over again," he paused, "They did everything execution style. Up against the wall and all that crap-"

"Where was I when this happened? It all sounds so exciting!" the Joker giggled.

"Shut up!" Jim and Robert said. The Joker shrugged again and leaned against the bars of his cell, listening intently to the suddenly interesting conversation.

"Is she alright though? Nancy I mean," Jim asked.

Robert shrugged and sipped his coffee, "Who knows, she won't talk to anyone..."

"Didja try Monica?" Jim suggested, "maybe she'll talk to her." Robert let out a harsh laugh and sat back in his chair.

"D'ya really think Monica'll talk to her right about now? I don't, and I should know, the woman's my sister for Christ sake," Robert paused and stared at his coffee for a moment. " No," he said finally. "No... I wish it were that simple but it isn't. Nancy is Monica's tool to gain a reputation so she can go to parties and balls and junk like that,"

Jim sighed, "It was worth a shot,"

"Now hold on just a second." the Joker said. Jim and Robert looked up at him, " your tellin' me- well, not really but... anyway. Your telling me that, uh, it's Monica right?" Jim and Robert nodded, "Kay'- that this Monica chick- who I'm only assuming is little, uh, Nancy's oh so loving mother won't talk to her because of some... reputation thing?" Jim and Robert nodded, "... that's fucked up,"

"For once I agree with you," Robert said. The Joker smiled and leaned against his cage again.

"See," he said, "I'm not so bad," Robert and Jim gave him a flat look and went back to drinking coffee. The Joker wasn't done asking questions however.

"So Robbie-" the Joker asked.

"Don't call me that," Robert mumbled.

" Okay then, Rob? Robert? Max? Maxwell? Mr. Webber?" he chuckled.

"Go home," Jim said, "get some rest, you need it Robbie- I mean Robert."

The Joker looked surprised for a moment, then proceeded to laugh his ass off until Commissioner Jim Gordon banged against the bars of his cell with his gun. The Joker just laughed harder as he watched Robert Maxwell Webber walk away, only after he had left did the Joker stop laughing.

"Oh boy," the Joker said, " I needed that."

"SHUT UP!" Robert shouted back.


	2. Then they take Jeremy Talos

Robert made his way home, stopping for a burger on the way. He sighed and looked out his car window, wonder to himself whether or not he should visit Nancy.

"Bet she's damn lonely," he grumbled. He sighed and turned his car around and headed for the hospital. It was so quiet out that night it was unnerving for poor Robert, so he turned on the radio to an oldies rock station and thought Nancy would like this song. He hummed the tune to himself and drove on, hoping Nancy would still be awake at this hour.

She was.

/|\

Nancy Alexis Webber sat quietly in her hospital room, listening to the groans of the person in the bed next to her. She could only imagine what they were doing. Or thinking. She would be groaning to if she thought to hard about what she had seen the morning before. Not only would she be groaning, but sobbing and screaming and wailing and looking around for something sharp to kill herself with. So she didn't think about it. Instead she thought happy things. She thought of life, which made her think of the sun, which made her think of the beach. Beaches made her think of suntans and sunburns, which made her think of cancer, which made her think of death. Death, made her think of the mach-10s that had been used blow off her friend Jeremy Talos's face, and the way his blood had somehow found its way to every available surface in the classroom: the walls, the ceiling, the shooters, the captives, the desks... Nancy opened her eye and stared at the wall and was glad to find that it wasn't stained with anything but vomit colored paint.

"Better vomit than blood," she mumbled.

" Nancy? Sweety?" a kind voice asked.

Nancy looked up to see one of her nurses in the doorway. Ms. Wicker was her name. She was a nice lady, short, plump, and grandma looking. Nancy expected her to walk in one day with a big batch of cookies with a floral pattern apron.

"Hm?" Nancy asked.

"Your uncle's here sweety, he wants to talk to you," Ms. Wicker cooed. Nancy nodded and sat up a bit.

Robert Maxwell Webber walked into the room and sat down in one of the chairs next to Nancy's bed. It was quiet for a long time until Robert took Nancy's pale hand in his.

"Nancy," he said, "I know you don't want to talk to anyone- but... if ya could, uh. Maybe you could tell someone what happened before the cops showed up..."

Nancy sat for a long time and thought, Robert waited.

"We...," Nancy started. Robert nodded, " We... we were taking notes... in class," she mumbled, "about inequalities... nobody was really listening 'r anything. All of a sudden... we all heard-" Nancy's breath trembled for a moment, "-screaming. We heard screaming, from down the hall... a-a-and then th-these guys with big, big guns walk in a-a-a-and they start screaming at us, t-t-t-tuh' get up against the wall," she stuttered. "So we did, ya know? A-a-a-and then they grabbed some of us and set us back down in desk's a-a-and they tied us up and made us look at the kids on the wall and they said- they said "These f-f-fuckers your friends?" and everyone nodded and was cryin' and everything and shoutin' and screaming...." she stopped a moment and caught her breath, " then they laughed and said somethin' like "W-w-well, you get tuh' see 'em die and they get to watch you cry!"" she shrieked.

"Nancy..." Robert tried to say.

" S-s-s-so they start laughin' again and they take the girl that sits in front of me in first hour and they shove her up against the wall and they step back and pull out th-thi-this double-barreled shotgun thing and they put it in her mouth and they pull the trigger," she shuddered and remembered the way her brains had splattered against the projector screen, "A-a-a-and- and then they took Cody, you remember him? They take Cody and do the same thing-"

"Nancy stop it..." Robert whimpered in horror.

"Then," she whispered, " Then they take Jeremy Talos and put him up against the wall... they put away the shotgun and pull out this machine gun thing and they point it at im' and say, "You got a girlie, jock?" he says, "No." and they say, "Good, cause she'd miss you." Then- then they pointed the machine gun thing at his face and pulled the trigger..." Nancy trailed off then and stared off into space.

Robert Maxwell Webber had heard a lot of weird shit in his life and met a lot of screwed up people, but this... this was worse then anything even the Joker had confessed to so far. Robert looked at his niece in horror and sympathy.

Ms. Wicker walked in then and waited until Robert got up to leave before she said anything.

"What happened?" she asked Robert as they walked down the hall to the lobby.

"To much," Robert sighed, " When can you have her out?"

"I can have her to you by tomorrow if thats what your asking," Ms. Wicker said with a small, sympathetic smile.

"That'd be great, thank you so much," Robert said, sighing in relief.

"It's my job sweety," she said.

/|\

Robert walked out to his car, fidgeting with his keys and mumbling about Nancy. He found his car and looked through all the windows before getting in. Poor Robert had been car jacked once and had always been a little paranoid with cars since. He sighed and started the engine, listening to it purr for a moment before putting it in reverse and driving off.

It was quiet until his phone began to beep at him, he sighed again and picked it up.

" Hello?" he asked.

"Hi Rob," a woman's voice said. Robert knew the voice instantly.

"Monica," he said, "I hope you know your daughters still in shock at the hospital,"

Monica sighed," I know that Rob, I was just calling to ask if you could pick her up whenever she gets out,"

"Why can't you?" Robert asked, getting more and more frustrated with the situation with every passing second, " She's your damn daughter, flesh and freaking blood Monica, why can't you talk to your daughter about... anything?" he said in a louder voice.

"Because it's no good to have a daughter that can't keep herself together under pressu-" she never finished. Robert hung up his phone and threw it into the back seat. He pulled over to the side of the road and sat in his car for a minute and let himself relax. His phone beeped at him again, but this time it was another ringer. He reached back and picked it up and read the caller-ID.

**Jim**, it said. Robert answered.

"What is it?" he asked expecting the worst and hoping for the best.

"Did you talk to her?" Jim Gordon asked.

"Yeah, Monica and Nancy," he grumbled, rubbing his temples.

"How's Nancy?" Jim asked.

"She's a wreck," Rob mumbled, "One of the nurses says they can let 'er out tomorrow."

"Thats good. She doesn't need to be there," Jim said, he paused and there were some muffled voices, "No Joker, you don't get to meet her."

Robert chuckled a little, "God he's a dumb ass. You need any help down there?"

Jim sighed and thought for a moment, "No... no I think we'll be okay down here. You get home, get some rest."

"You got it Jim, thanks," Robert said.

"Sure thing Rob... shut up Joker," Jim said. Maniacal laughter could be heard on the other line as Jim Gordon hung up.


	3. Getting Out

Ms. Wicker walked into Nancy's room the next morning and opened the curtains a bit. Nancy stared blankly at the wall and squinted for a second from the sudden change of light, but other than that she didn't move. Ms. Wicker sighed and walked over to her bed and sat down.

"Nancy? Darlin'?" she said, Nancy looked at her, "Your uncle's gonna come pick you up today, alright?"

"Really?" Nancy asked. Ms. Wicker smiled at the quiet girl and nodded. "Can... can I have something to eat... please?" she whispered.

"A'course you can sweety, you just wait here and I'll get you a little somethin'-somthin'," Ms. Wicker said. She got up and walked out the door.

Nancy was alone again. The room was quiet, and she was left to think again. This time though, she had something to think about. Something to occupy the space in her mind usually taken up by blood and bone and brain.

She was going home.

She was getting out.

She was leaving.

Nancy Alexis Webber did something then, she never thought she'd be able to do again. Nancy Alexis Webber smiled. And while she smiled, she thought. She thought of going home and sleeping in her own bed and never dreaming about death again. She thought about seeing her uncle walk into the room with a set of nice, comfy clothes for her to wear on the way. What she had not thought of was the giant meal that was suddenly placed before her by Ms. Wicker.

"Oh," Nancy said.

"Oh, indeed," Ms. Wicker said.

Nancy stared at the usually disgusting looking hospital food in front of her: chicken with that fake white rice, mashed potatoes, green beans, carrots, corn, beef stew, and steak, – well, tiny steak – but steak none the less. Nancy grinned and ate while Ms. Wicker pulled the curtain away from the other bed and pulled away the dirty sheets and pillow cases.

"Your uncle should be here soon sweety," she said. Nancy nodded and she left with the dirty sheets and walked down the hallway.

Nancy ate everything that had been set before her, and when she was done she laid back and closed her eyes for what only seemed to be a second. That second ended up being the two and a half hours it took for Robert Webber to get off work long enough to pick her up.

/|\

"Nancy..." a voice said. "Wake up Nancy, it's time to check out."

Nancy blinked a few times and sat up, mumbling to herself. She looked around and found Rob leaning against the railing of her bed, smiling at her.

"I see you got some shut eye," he said.

"Did I?" Nancy asked. She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and sat up a little more.

"I brought you some clothes," Rob said, " I hope they fit."

"Thanks Rob," she whispered.

"You bet kid," he said. "Listen, I know you really want to go home and talk to your mom and everything but..." he looked at her and smirked. They both knew what Nancy's mother thought of her. "I'm still, technically at work," he said. "So I hope you don't mind sitting in my office for a few hours."

"I don't mind at all Rob," said Nancy.

"Okay, just making sure," he said. "Oh and by the way, you remember that one time you told me that you really wanted to see the Joker in person?"

"You have 'im locked up at the station don'tcha?" Nancy said with a smirk.

Robert grinned, "Your a smart kid Nance," he said, "But this guy's like Hannibal Lecter-"

"He's a cannibal?" she asked with a smirk. Robert laughed.

"No," he sighed, "Although I have a feeling he could be if he wanted to..." he paused and looked at Nancy again. " No... no he'll get t' your head. Its a game for 'im," he said and paused, " Its easy for 'im tuh just sneak in there and screw everything up."

"Oh," Nancy said. " So he's a brain ninja?"

Robert Maxwell Webber laughed so hard, then, that he almost threw up his burger from the night before.


	4. Tears

The police station was loud and alive that afternoon. Office workers, cops, and CSI's were trotting around, trying to get things done. The Joker sat in his cage and watched them scurry and shimmy past other people. He actually got some responses from people when he'd tell them "Good afternoon." They'd smile and say good afternoon back, then realize who they were talking to and stalk off. The Joker would laugh and laugh some more until someone told him to shut up. Jim Gordon walked in was greeted with handshakes and pats on the shoulder.

"I wish people would greet me like that," the Joker said as Jim walked up to his cage.

"Now listen here Joker," Jim said, pointing harshly at him, "Robert's coming back today with Nancy in about ten minutes, so don't you screw it up. Is that clear?"

"Ca-rystal," the Joker chuckled.

Jim sighed and walked off, mumbling something about going crazy. The Joker giggled and leaned against the bars of his cell, humming to himself. It didn't take long for Robert to show up after that. He trudged in with a tiny figure behind him, clinging to his jacket. The Joker cocked his head to one side and looked at her. Cute, skinny, green eyes, and blonde hair that hung in short droopy spikes on her head. She was wearing a pair of big plaid shorts, a big t-shirt, a pair of converses that seemed to have the anarchy signs all over them (Oh goody, the Joker thought to himself), one of those messenger bags, and a jacket that would have fit Jim Gordon. All in all, extremely adorable.

"Robbie!" the Joker shouted.

Robert turned around and glared at him, the Joker just poked his tongue out at him and smile.

"What is it Joker?" he asked.

"Who's she? Not Nancy, couldn't be," the Joker said, "You said you weren't gonna bring her here." He gasped a little. "That means you lied Robbie! Lying's wrong ya' know."

"Shut up Joker," Robert said.

Nancy cocked her head to one side and looked at the Joker. The Joker stared back and grinned.

"Nancy," Robert said.

"Hm?" Nancy asked, not taking her eyes off of the Joker, who continued to stare back at her.

"I gotta clean my office up a bit before you can sit anywhere," he said. "It'll only take a second, 'kay?"

"Sure thing Rob," Nancy said looking up at him, thus ending her staring contest with the Joker. "Take as much time as you need."

Robert strode away to his office, mumbling to himself. Nancy leaned against a wall, reached into her bag, and pulled out a giant set of headphones. She hooked her old school iPod shuffle in and turned it on. Soon, she was lightly bobbing her head to Coldplay, and tapping her fingers against the wall, keeping up with the beat. The Joker was left to stare at her, so he did. He watched the way she breathed, the way she stood, the way she mouthed the words to whatever she was listening to.

She looked tired, like she hadn't slept in a while.

"So," he said. Nancy looked up and pulled a headphone away from her ear. "You're Nancy huh?" She nodded. "Robbie never told me you were cute..." Nancy's face turned a light shade of pink then.

"... yeah," she mumbled, "uh-"

"Nancy," came Robert's voice. "There's room now. You can come in." She nodded and shoved her iPod in her pocket. Robert looked over at the Joker who smiled at him. He grabbed Nancy's shoulder and eased her into his office, never looking away from the Joker.

"Hey Robbie," the Joker said, "how old's Nancy?"

"Why?" Robert asked. The Joker shrugged. "She's seventeen."

"Aw, what a shame," the Joker grinned. Robert lost it.

"You stay away from her you crazy son of a bitch!" he shrieked, pulling his gun from its holster. The Joker just sat and smiled at him.

"Just asking," the Joker giggled.

Robert walked walk into his office, huffing, puffing, and red faced. Nancy stood up and asked what was wrong. Robert just set down his gun and got some water from the water cooler in the corner of his office. He sat down and rubbed his forehead.

"What happened Rob?" Nancy asked. Robert shook his head.

"Joker's just bein' weird again," he mumbled.

"Isn't that his job?" Nancy asked with a small smile. Robert smiled back and nodded a little.

"Yeah. I guess it is huh?" he said. "You need something? Ya know, before I get back to work?"

Nancy shook her head, "I'm good."

Robert nodded and got up, "Holler if you need anything."

Nancy nodded and went back to listening to music. _Hide and Seek_ by Imogen Heap. Nancy breathed and leaned back in her seat, mouthing the words to herself.

-3 hours later-

Nancy was asleep, Rob was done with work, and the Joker was bored.

"Nancy..." Roberts voice said, "Nancy. We have to go."

Nancy woke up and grumbled, "...Don't wanna."

Robert chuckled. "I know ya don't hon' but you gotta."

Nancy sat up from her slightly curled position and stretched. "Alright," she said.

Robert helped her up and gathered her things for her. Nancy groggily made her way out the door and smiled at Jim Gordon, who sat next to the Jokers cage. He told her to have a good night and told Rob to to the same.

"Nighty-night, Nancy," the Joker said. Robert glared at him.

"Night Joker," she said. She heard him giggle.

Robert lead Nancy outside, she looked at her watch. It was already about 8:00 at night and she hadn't slept in a few days, so an early bed time sounded nice. The two walked over to Robert's car and got in, Robert slamming his door behind him. Nancy jumped at the sudden noise and looked at him, he didn't look happy.

"S'matter Rob?" she asked.

"I hate that guy," he mumbled.

"Who?"

"The Joker. He kept talkin' about you... it just made me uncomfortable."

"Oh..." Nancy paused. "How long was I out?" She asked.

Robert started up the car and looked at the clock, "'Bout three hours," he mumbled.

"Oh..." Nancy said.

Robert drove the ten minutes to Nancy's house and walked her to the door. Nancy rang the door bell and waited for her mother to come running down the stairs. She buzzed again after about a minute and looked at Robert in a way that said, "Is she going to answer?" Robert shrugged, leaned against the wall, and checked his watch. They waited a while longer until Robert pulled out his cell phone and dialed Monica Webber's number. Nancy heard the dial tone ring a few times, then a voice sing through the speakers.

"Hello?" the voice asked.

"Monica? Where are you?" Robert asked.

"I'm at a- um... social gathering! Yeah thats it! A social gathering!" Monica cooed.

"Alright then," Robert said in a flat tone. "Then I guess I'll just take Nancy back to my place..."

"Could you?" Monica asked, "I'd really appreciate it." Nancy could hear her mother smile over the phone. She bit her lip and looked down at her feet.

"Sure, Mon'. Whatever you say," Robert hung up and looked at Nancy. "C'mon Nance."

Robert Maxwell Webber and Nancy Alexis Webber walked back down the walkway to the beat up Chevy sitting at the end of the driveway. They got in, shut the doors, and turned the car on, and for a long while, they both sat in silence, listening to the wind whistle by as they drove. Nancy curled up into a little ball in her seat and put her head in her hands, and Nancy Webber cried. Nancy cried for her friends that had been shot and killed. She cried for the people she didn't know at school. She cried for her uncle. She cried for Jim Gordon. She cried for the Joker.

And for the first time in a long time, Nancy Alexis Webber cried for herself.


	5. Fake

Monica Webber snapped her phone shut and put it back in her Kathy van Zealand purse. She turned around and put a fake toothy grin back on her face.

Monica was an attractive woman, tanned, dyed blonde hair, manicured and pedicured toes and fingernails, sparkling white teeth, and a wonderful taste in clothes. Monica had brown eyes though. Her daughter had told her once that it meant she was full of shit. Monica slapped her.

"Sorry ladies," she said to the group of women in front her. She called them her "friends."

"It's alright Mon'"they said to her, grinning the same fake toothy grin. "Who was it?"

"My brother," she said.

"Isn't he the cop?" one asked.

"Nothing like a man in uniform," another cooed, fanning herself.

The women laughed a little fake laugh and sipped the fake champagne from the fake wine glasses in their fake hands. The jabbered about men and purses and make up like a bunch of teenage girls on speed. They compared compacts and purses, and giggled about celebrity gossip. They talked about climbing social ladders, and Monica Webber talked about her job at Wayne Industries as a secretary. The others ooh'd and aww'd at her success and clicked their tongues whenever she talked about how things would sometimes go wrong in her fake world.

Fake. Fake. Fake. FAKE. FAKE.

The words pounded at the inside of Monica's brain. They bounced around in her skull and made lumps in her throat.

"Where's the lady's room?" she asked. All the women pointed in the direction of said "lady's room," and Monica nodded, trotting off.

She walked down the hall and walked into the restroom. She closed the door behind her and set her purse down on the counter. She looked at herself in the mirror and watched herself cry. She sobbed and sobbed and sobbed. She cried until there were no more tears left and looked down at the fake shoes on her fake feet.

"I hate this," she hissed to herself, "I hate everything about it. Fake. Fake. FAKE. FAKE!" she shrieked.

There was a knock on the door.

"Monica?" one of the fake women from outside asked, "are you alright?"

Monica tripped over words of explanation and finally found her mental footing, "Yes," she said in her fake happy voice, "Yes I'm fine."

Monica gathered herself and reapplied her makeup, smoothed her dress, and looked at her cell phone, it was 9:00 at night. She sighed and looked at herself in the mirror one more time. She smiled a fake smile at herself and turned around and walked through the door again, back down the hallway, into the group of fake women in the main room. She apologized for her loudness and for making them wait so long. They smiled fake smiles at her and told her that it was alright. They said it happened to everyone. They handed her another fake glass of fake champagne and laughed fake laughs about their fake lives, and Monica Webber laughed with them. Looking happy and full of life she thought of the words again.

Fake. Fake. Fake. FAKE. FAKE!


	6. Thinking of You

The Joker sneezed.

"Bless you," Jim Gordon said out of habit.

"Thanks," the Joker sniffed.

Jim Gordon was on watch duty again, keeping a watchful eye on the Joker. Not like he could do much, stuck in his cage.

"Someone's thinkin' 'bout me," the Joker giggled.

"Hm," said Jim.

It was quiet again for a long time until Jim got up and walked over to the lounge to get himself some more coffee. His phone buzzed. He answered it and mumbled responses to whatever the other person on the line was saying. Jim put down his coffee and hung up his phone, opened it again and dialed another number. The Joker looked through the bars of his cage and tried to hear what the Commissioner was saying. He didn't have to wait long, Jim streaked out of the lounge like a bat out of hell.

'He he,' the Joker thought, 'Bat outta hell. Batman. That's funny.'

"I know Rob, I know," Jim said into his phone. "Rape and murder across town... I gotta be there in, like, ten minutes...Yeah ... could ya? Yeah, sure you can bring 'er... thanks so much Rob, you don't know how much it means." Jim hung up.

"Where ya goin' Jimmy?" the Joker asked. Jim stared at him for a moment then sighed.

"Murder 'cross town. Rob's gonna come watch you," he said. "He's bringin' Nancy, so don't you try anything stupid. Got it?"

"Sure thing Jimmy," the Joker said.

"And stop calling me Jimmy," Jim said.

"Never," the Joker said.

Jim ran around from office to office for a few minutes and gathered his things. Equipment, gun, badge, all that jazz. The Joker watched him scurry and leave. Once again the Joker was alone, left to his own devices, which weren't too numerous. He stretched out on his bench and stared at the ceiling for a while, got bored with that and went on to hum to himself. After he was bored with that he decided to wonder what poor Robbie would look like when he walked in. He probably hadn't gotten to much sleep, he'd probably walk in with Nancy trudging in behind him, headphones perched atop her spiky head, mouthing the words to whatever she was listening to like she had earlier that day. She'd probably find a comfy spot in Rob's office and go back to sleep, or maybe she'd stay up. She was probably afraid to go to sleep, she'd dream about death and blood. The Joker doubted she wanted that. Maybe she'd be a good sport and talk to him.

"That'd be nice," he mumbled to himself. He dozed off.

About ten minutes later, just like Jimmy had promised, Rob walked in, little Nancy in tow.


	7. Pleasant Conversation

Rob finally pulled into the parking lot of his apartment complex and helped Nancy gather her things again. She was pale faced and puffy eyed, she had cried the whole way home. She was shaking a little as she got out of the car, but as soon as her feet hit the ground she was a straight pillar of power with all her little pitiful pains hidden from the world in the marble of her workings. Her pains weren't pitiful however, not to Robert they weren't. To Nancy they were, she hated showing her problems to other people. She felt it burdened their already heavily laden lives. So she would stand passive and strong, and show no emotion but understanding.

She was the listener and the councilor. It all sounded so biblical, but it was true.

"You okay Nance?" Rob asked. Nancy nodded and took her bag as he handed it to her.

"I'm fine," she said.

I'm not alright! I'm not okay! Help me! Help me! Her mind screamed. She pushed it aside.

"Alright," Rob said, "Lets get inside then." Nancy nodded again.

The two walked the flight of stairs up to Rob's apartment and opened the door. They walked inside and set down their things. They discussed for a few minutes who would get the sofa, Nancy insisted. Rob got her a blanket and pillow and set it up on the couch for her. Nancy looked at the wall clock in the small kitchen.

**9:30**

Nancy set her bag next to the couch and pulled out her headphones. She kicked off her shoes, stretched out on the couch, and said good night to Rob, who made her stand up and give him a hug. She needed it. She laid back down and listened to her music, bobbing her head a little and tapping her fingers to the beat against the sofa. _Death and all His Friends_ by Coldplay.

-About 30 minutes later-

Robert's phone buzzed on his nightstand. He picked it up.

"Hello?" he managed.

"Rob?" came Jim Gordon's voice.

"Jim," Robert sat up. "What's wrong?"

"I need you to come in for a while," Jim said.

Robert looked at his clock, "Jim, do you know how late it is?"

"I know Rob, I know."

"Well, what happened?"

"Murder and rape across town... I gotta be there in, like, ten minutes."

"And you need some one to come in and watch Mr. Happy-Pants?"

"Yeah. Could ya?"

"Sure Jim. I'll be there in a few, I'll need to bring Nancy though, I don't trust this side of town, you know that."

"Yeah, sure you can bring 'er."

"'Kay."

"Thanks so much Rob, you don't know how much it means."

Jim Gordon hung up. Rob put his phone down and got up out of bed, rubbed his eyes, and got dressed. He walked out into the living room and found Nancy, sound asleep. He sighed and walked over to her.

"Nancy?" he whispered, "Nancy I got called in. You gotta get up kid. I'm not gonna leave you here by yourself."

"The Joker can watch me..." she mumbled. Robert cocked his head to one side.

"What?" he asked.

Nancy's eye's fluttered open, "Hm?"

'She must have been dreaming,' Robert thought. "Joker's not here sweety," he chuckled.

"Oh, what?" Nancy sat up.

"Nothin' hon'," Robert said, " You must've been dreaming."

Nancy nodded and got up. She readjusted headphones and grabbed her bag. She ruffled her hair a bit and stretched. Robert grinned at her and she grinned back, ignoring the thoughts running through her head. She had been dreaming of talking to the Joker. Nothing special, just idle chatter. Life, music, movies. Nothing special, just pleasant conversation.


	8. Carol, Anthony, and Eric

Robert pulled up to the station at about midnight and got out. Nancy followed close behind, glancing over her shoulder in the process. Robert walked up the steps and opened the door for Nancy, smiling at her. She smiled back and mouthed the words to _Goodnight and Go_ by Imogen Heap. He closed and locked the door behind himself and twirled the keys around his finger as he followed Nancy down the hall to the main office. He whistled a little tune to himself. Nancy stopped at the door and waited until Robert caught up with him.

"Nervous?" Robert joked with her. She grinned and shrugged.

Robert opened the door and walked inside. The Joker had dozed off and sat slouched against the bars of his cage. Nancy cocked her head to the side at him. Robert walked into his office and started to clear things again. There was crash.

"Son of a-!" Robert began.

The Jokers head snapped up and he looked around. His eyes landed on Nancy.

"Nancy!" he shouted in a happy voice. She jumped and looked at him.

"Hi," she mumbled.

She wasn't as awake as the Joker thought she would be. She was slouched forward and the dark circles under her eyes seemed more pronounced. He didn't imagine she would be sleeping very much for a while. Not until the memories started to fade, and even then she'd wake up screaming for her friends. He looked back at Robert's office and waited for him to come out. Robert trudged out with a chair and set it next to Nancy. She looked at him, confused.

"You're gonna hafta sit out here for a while Nance," he said, "shelf fell over. No room."

Nancy nodded and set her bag on the floor. Robert trudged back into his office, grumbling to himself. Nancy smiled at him as he walked away and sat down. She lost her smile and zoned out, lost in a world of her own. She imagined she was in her favorite video games and books, movies and plays. It was nice in those worlds. She raced through them in portals. Little shimmering pools of darkness, riveted with stars and moons. She'd leap into them and disappear from one place to another and back again. For a while she was just floating through space, letting the music that pulsed through her headphones push her past planets.

The Joker watched her intently, wondering what she was thinking. She would blink every so often, but other than that she didn't move. For a moment her head moved and looked down at the MP3 player in her hand.

"You shut up," she mumbled to it. She clicked a button on it and listened to whatever it was that came up for a few seconds, then relaxed. She leaned back in her chair and mouthed more words to herself. A little buzzing noise came from her pocket and she froze, her eyes open wide. It was her phone.

She pulled it form her pocket and looked at it. She looked up at the Joker and didn't say anything.

"Well answer it!" he said.

Nancy took off her headphones, hung them round her neck, and flipped her phone open, "C-Carol?" she stuttered.

"Nancy!" a voice screamed over the speakers.

Nancy stood up, quick as a flash, a gigantic smile plastered across her no longer pale face, "Carol!" she screamed back. Robert poked his head through his office door. "Oh my God, Carol... your okay..." Nancy started to cry a little.

"Y-y-yeah," Carol stuttered, she was sobbing. "Eric, Anthony, and I are okay. W-w-we're all okay."

No one had ever really smiled at the Joker before. Nancy did then, the biggest, happiest, prettiest smile anyone had ever smiled at him before. He couldn't breath for a second. She spun a little on her heel and grabbed her chair to keep her balance.

"Well- where are you guys?" Nancy asked.

"Hospital," Carol said, "You?"

Nancy smiled at the Joker again, "Police station, with my uncle," she said.

There was a pause, then, "Don't they have the Joker locked up at the police station?" Carol asked. Nancy giggled a little. "No you are not!" Carol shouted, "There is no way in Heaven or Hell!"

"Carol darling," Nancy cooed, "We as humans are stuck slap dab in the middle of the two, making the situation quite possible, and probable."

"Liar!" Carol shouted, "You lie! Lying is a terrible waste of breath!"

"I swear," Nancy said with a grin. Robert shook his head and scooted back into his office.

"Swear on what-?" Carol asked.

There were other voices on the line, "....lemme talk to 'er!" someone shouted.

"Fine. Fine!" Carol shouted. "Anthony wants to talk to you." Nancy's smile, if possible, got even bigger.

"Anthony!" she squeaked.

"Nancy dearest!" he squeaked back. "Is it true?"

"But of course, Anthony," she said. "Why would I lie of such things? I ask you."

Once again there was a pause, then, "I believe you," Anthony said. "But if it is true then... might I talk to him?"

Nancy laughed until she cried and sat down, "I don't think Robert would appreciate me getting close enough to the Joker to hand him my phone,"

"I wouldn't mind," the Joker said with a wicked grin. Nancy laughed some more.

The sound of Carol shouting, "OH MY GOD!" came from the other line, Nancy held the phone away from her ear.

"Carol I assume?" she asked.

"Yes," Anthony answered, "she heard him."

"How is everybody?" Nancy asked all of a sudden.

"Fine," Anthony said, "Eric was shot, he's alright though, just in the arm," Nancy's shoulders rose and fell at every word. "Carol and I are fine. Cuts and bruises from tripping over other people... and being tripped over of course."

Nancy imagined Anthony taking Carols hand in his. They loved each other unconditionally, so it didn't bother Carol when Anthony would call Nancy "darling" or "dearest" or "love." They were simply terms of friendship and caring. Nancy's smile dropped a little at the sudden feeling of loneliness that swept over her being. The Joker noticed.

"Good," she said simply. Her sudden relief showed as she relaxed in her chair. "Get yourself some rest. You need it."

"Nancy?" Anthony asked. "... you were there, weren't you? When they killed Jeremy."

Nancy paused, "Yes."

"I'm sorry..." Anthony said. Nancy smiled a very sad smile.

"It's alright, rest now."

"Of course..." Anthony said, "tell the Joker we said 'hi'." He chuckled.

"Of course..." she said and hung up. She looked at the Joker, "My friends say 'Hi'."

He grinned at her and looked at Robert, who was staring at him.

"S'matter Robbie?" he giggled.

"What're you thinkin'?" Robert hissed.

"Lots ah things Robbie, lots ah things," the Joker hissed back, a giant crocked grin on his makeup clad face.

Nancy wished she knew what he was thinking to so she could either take her chair and get as far away from him as possible, or stay where she was. Robert turned an angry shade of purple, so Nancy put her headphones back over her head and was quite surprised to hear Elton John singing _Your Song_ to her. She smiled and leaned back, turned it up, and tuned out Robert yelling at the Joker.


	9. Psychology

Nancy sat curled up in her chair, phone in hand. She clicked a button on the side and the sub-screen lit up. **11:32PM** it said. She sighed and put it back in her pocket. Robert had finished yelling at the Joker and was back in his office picking up books and things from off the floor. Nancy had offered her help and was refused, so she went back to listening to her iPod. _Clocks _by Coldplay. She imagined she was outside somewhere, alone. Away from all of the little things that gave her little aches and pains. It was a clear night on the little piece of rock she was sitting on in space, and all the stars of the galaxy were shining happily at her. She hoped that this is what is was like when you died. Space and stars and floating. Another song came on and she opened her eyes. The Joker was looking at the floor, a cheek resting in his hand. He looked tired. She was tired to, she realized. She hadn't slept in two days and she hadn't eaten much since then. She had eaten lunch the day before, but other than that she refused to eat anything in the fear of throwing it up at the first thought of Jeremy Talos. She didn't think about him. She curled up tighter, wrapped her arms around her knees, and set her closed eyes on her knee caps. Soon she was somewhere else again.

The Joker looked up from the floor, Nancy didn't notice. He looked through Robert's door and back at Nancy's quiet figure. She didn't move much. She could've been dead and no one would have noticed. The Joker knew though, as her shoulders moved up and down, as her fingers tapped against her leg as the music played, she was alive. The excited relief of hearing from her friends had faded and left her quiet and alone again. He couldn't see her face, and he wondered if she was smiling like she had before. She wasn't, and he knew that. Something had happened in her head and was tearing her apart from the inside. It was hurting her whatever it was. She looked up at him and he froze. She was crying.

'What is up with this girl,' he thought. Not that he really cared. He was just interested. She put her face against her knees again and her shoulders shook in a quiet sob. 'She's weirder than I am,' he thought. He put his fist against his lips to keep form laughing out loud, 'Yeah right,' he thought. Nancy ran her shaking fingers through her droopy spikes and kept them there in the blonde mop on her head. She breathed a big shaky breath and uncurled from the chair. She quickly wiped the tears that threatened to fall and took her headphones off. She set her iPod in her lap and ran her hands thorough her hair again. She breathed again and leaned her forehead against her hand. She picked up her iPod and turned it off, took her headphones from around her neck and put them in her bag. She licked her lips and looked up at the Joker. He laced his fingers together and leaned forward on them. He raised his eyebrows and cocked his head to one side. She shook her head sighed. Robert leaned out of his office for a moment to check on them, then slipped back inside.

Robert's mind raced and whirred, trying to think of ways to keep Nancy away from the Joker. She didn't worry him. Nancy could take care of herself, she was smart like that. She could hold her own when it came to mind games. It was the Joker he worried about. If he got ahold of Nancy, he'd never see his niece again. He shuddered at the thought and bent down to pick up one of his books. It was a psychology book. He smiled and poked his head through the door.

"Nancy?" he said. She looked up from the Joker and blinked at him. He held the book up and watched as her face lit up. She hopped up from her chair and walked over to him. Robert watched the Joker, he was staring at her. He looked back at Nancy and handed her the book, she took it and sat back down. Robert glared at the Joker for a moment, who just smiled back at him. He turned around and started to put up books again, glancing every so often at Nancy as she flipped through the book he had given her.

His father, her grandfather, had been a psychologist. At first it didn't interest Nancy, but then she started to take the class at school. She would call him on the phone and tell him all about everything they talked about. The main subject for the past month, of course, had been the Joker. Robert imagined Nancy walking onto class and telling everyone that she had met him and talked to him. Everyone would be jealous and would ask her questions. She'd answer then excitedly. He looked through the door again. Nancy wasn't in her chair anymore, she was laying on the floor on her stomach, her eyes glued to the pages. She would sit up and smile and lay down again, glancing at the Joker sometimes, then back at her book. She was happy in the book. It let her escape from everything. Everything that made her cry, everything that made her hurt, everything that made her hate. Books and games and movies and music took her there. She smiled at her escape like a mother to her child. She looked up at him and smiled. Robert smiled back. She glanced at the Joker with the same smile. He froze. She went back to reading. Robert watched the Joker with sudden curiosity. Robert then realized something. The Joker didn't want to do things to Nancy. She captivated him, she interested him. Robert couldn't help but relax a little. He smiled a bit more and turned to pick up more books. He put most of them up in the shelves and others he piled on his desk to give away later. He needed to get rid of some of them anyway. He picked up a picture from the floor and wiped the dust away. It was a picture of Monica and Nancy when she was just a baby. Monica loved her so much back then. Then she moved to Gotham and got involved in the big social circles, she didn't need Nancy anymore. He pulled the picture from its frame and looked at again. Monica was only 18 when she had Nancy, her dad had run off. Monica was 35 now and thriving as a social butterfly. Robert decided to give Nancy the picture, to make her feel like Monica had loved her at one time. She had, at one point.

Nancy was sitting on the floor, reading her psychology book. Rob stepped out of his office with a sad smile. He was holding something. She cocked her head to one side and looked at him. He held the thing out; it was a picture. Nancy got up and took it, she sat down again. The Joker leaned forward and tried to see what it was. Nancy held it like a jewel, never moving to fast to see it at different angles, never taking her eyes off it. She took a deep breath and looked at Rob. He smiled at her and sat down in her abandoned chair.

"She did love you," he said slowly.

Nancy hugged the small photo to her chest and closed her eyes. She nodded and left the world again. She was with her mother, in front of her grandparents house. It was Christmas, it wasn't snowing in New Mexico, it never did. It snowed here in Gotham. She remembered the first time she saw it. It came down it sheets like summer rain and she ran outside to make snow angels and snowmen. Her mother did too, but only for a while. That was when Nancy started figuring out that her mother was leaving her life. She was 12. Nancy opened her eyes to avoid it. She looked at the Joker, he was gripping the bars of his cell, leaning his forehead against them. Staring at her. She looked at Robert, he was smiling back at her. His phone buzzed. He picked it up and looked at the caller-ID.

**Monica**.


	10. Disown Me

Robert answered his phone, "Hello?"

"Rob?" Monica answered, "You still have Nancy?"

"Yeah," he said. He ran his fingers through his thinning hair.

"'Kay. Where are you?" she asked.

"At the police station," he said, "Watching the Joker with Nancy-"

"You're letting my daughter near that freak?!" Monica screeched.

Robert held the phone away from his ear.

"What'd I do?" the Joker asked.

Nancy smiled, "Nothing probably. Just being alive pisses my mom off."

The Joker pouted at her and giggled at the face she made at him.

Robert shook his head at them, "She's fine Mon', she's with me. She's safe..." he paused. "Since when did you care about Nancy?" he hissed harshly.

He walked away and continued to exchange quiet, angry words with his sister. Nancy's smile faded and she looked at the floor. The Joker sat down on the floor in front of her and pouted a little. He looked up at Robert -he wasn't happy- then back at Nancy, she wasn't happy either. Nancy clasp her hands together and closed her eyes.

"Disown. Disown. Disown," she said, "Disown me. I have a car. I'll live with Rob. I'll get a part-time job. I'll help pay the bills. All I have to do is go home and pack. It won't take me but 20 minutes. I'll get my stuff and get out. Disown me. Disown me. Disown me..." she kept saying.

"You can come live with me when I get out!" the Joker suggested happily.

Nancy looked at him for a second then closed her eyes again, "I'll live with the Joker," she said, "I have a car. I'll get a job..." she repeated.

"Oh yay!" the Joker exclaimed. "Nancy's gonna live with me now!" He clapped his hands together and stood up with a grin.

Nancy looked up at him with a crocked smile. He froze again.

'I have to get used to that sooner or later,' he thought to himself.

Robert had just started to walk over to them when his phone buzzed. He turned on his heel and answered it. It was Jim Gordon.

"So Nancy," the Joker asked. "what kinda music-ah you got that lil' music thingy you got there?"

Nancy blinked and reached for her bag, pulling out her head phones, "Lots," she said with a shy little smile. She set the headphones over her head and turned the iPod on. She clicked through it, telling several music artist's to shut their faces in the process. She stopped on one song and set her headphones around her neck. She clicked one of the buttons, the volume, and held it. The song _Live and Let Die_ by Wings soon filled the whole room. Robert looked over his shoulder and nodded his approval at her. She grinned at him.

"Who sings it?" Robert whispered back at her.

"Paul McCartney!" she whispered.

Robert gave her the thumbs up and went back to talking to Jim. The Joker shook his head in amazement at her.

"I know more bands from the 1950's through the '80's then I do modern bands," she declared to him proudly.

"That's impressive," the Joker said. He thought a moment, "name a song by... Guns 'n' Roses."

"Welcome to the Jungle," she said, crossing her arms.

"Def Leppard," he said.

"Pour Some Sugar on Me-," she started.

"Don't mind if I do..." the Joker mumbled. Nancy's face changed color, but she continued.

"Hysteria, Love Bites, Let's Get Rocked-" she said again.

"That sounds nice, too," the Joker giggled.

Nancy's face changed colors again. Robert walked over to them and sat down.

"Jim'll be here soon," he said, "It wasn't pretty."

"I can imagine," Nancy said. "What did my mom say?"

Robert sighed, "She wants me to hold on to you until tomorrow... which is technically today," he said, "But you know what I mean."

"So she didn't disown me?" Nancy asked.

"No," he said. "Sorry."

Nancy looked at the Joker, "Sorry Joker," she said.

He dropped his head and pouted a little, "Damn," he said, "I was looking forward to blowing shit up with you..."

"Some other time,"she said with a smile. "Okay Joker?"

"Promise?" he asked looking at her like a big scary puppy.

She huffed a laugh and said, "Promise."

"Shake on it?" he asked with grin.

Nancy laughed again. "If it were possible," she said. She motioned toward Robert and smiled, "But I doubt Robert would appreciate that very much."

"I'd appreciate it..." the Joker said.

Nancy smiled at him. He licked his lips and looked away. She looked at him, a little confused, then shrugged it off. She looked back at Robert, he was leaning his tired head against his hand. His eyes were closed. Nancy grinned. He was asleep. She looked at the Joker and then back at Robert again. She was going to break the rules.

She cleared her throat, the Joker looked up at her. She nodded back at Robert and grinned. The Joker got it. Nancy leaned forward and extended her hand, the Joker did the same. The Joker's hand was especially warm when Nancy shook it. When she drew back she swallowed.

"Thats a lovely shade of red your face has turned," the Joker whispered, as to not wake up Robert.

Nancy's face got redder.


	11. The King and I

Jim showed back up at the station at about one in the morning, a giant troop of tired CSI and detectives trudging behind him. Nancy looked up from the psychology book in her lap and the Joker stopped fidgeting.

"Rob," Jim said, shaking his friend by the shoulder. Robert mumbled a little.

"Oh. Jim," Robert sat up.

"Thanks for comin' in Rob," Jim said, "Like I said, it means a lot"

"Sure. Sure," Robert said. He got up and stretched, "Better get home before the sun comes up."

"I would say the same, except..." Jim started. He waved around at the groups of people bustling around to get things organized and ready to start up another murder investigation. Robert smiled in sympathy and patted Nancy on the head.

"We better get goin' kid," he said. She nodded and stood up, putting her book in her bag. She looked at the Joker.

"Buh-Bye Nancy," he cooed.

Nancy smiled, "See ya Joker." she followed Robert out the door, wondering why everyone in the room kept staring at her.

She walked down the stairs to Rob's car. She got in and set down her bag. Rob started up the car and drove down the street a bit, he stopped at the light. He turned on the radio and began to sing along with Twisted Sister as they told the world they weren't gonna take it. Nancy sang along to and smiled.

So her mother didn't disown her? So she would have to go home tomorrow? She was happy now. Now was important. She would call her friends in the morning and talk to them for a while about their problems. Her problems would be left alone to fester in her mind. She would keep them there until she was alone.

Nancy thought about getting home and seeing her mother with that oh-so-fake smile on her face as she hugged her and kissed her and asked her if she was alright. Nancy would smile back and pretend to be happy...

No.

Not this time. She was sick of it. She was going to tell her mother how she really felt about her. Her mother would be angry with her, she'd wait until Robert left and she'd probably hit her, or maybe she wouldn't wait. Maybe she would hit her in front of Robert. Nancy wanted her to. She wanted her mother to hit her so she could walk away and pack her things, get in her car, and follow Robert home. Yes.

Then she would wait until school started up again and keep taking her psychology classes and get a scholarship somewhere. She'd make it. Then she thought of what her mother would do. Her mother would shout and scream and rant at her until she was gone. Nancy would just smile and continue to pack. She thought of what the Joker would say if she ever got the chance to tell him. She would. She knew that.

Robert pulled into the parking lot of his apartment complex and got out, waited for Nancy, and walked up the stairs. He opened his apartment door and shut it behind Nancy as she walked in. Robert trudged into the kitchen and turned the light on. Nancy took off her jacket and set her bag down by the couch. Robert pulled the fridge door open and peered inside. He sighed and pulled a nasty jug of milk out, poured it down the sink, and threw it away. He opened the cabinets and smiled. He reached inside and pulled out some instant ramen. Nancy walked in and smiled when he held it up.

"You can go watch TV if you want," he said. Nancy nodded and padded away into the living room.

"Do you have TCM?" she asked as she sat on the couch.

"I think so," Robert said, "Don't remember what channel it's on, you'll have to flick through 'em."

Nancy picked up the remote and turned on the TV. The picture was fuzzy and the sound was filled with static, but Nancy didn't mind. She flicked through the channels for awhile until she found the station she was looking for. The King and I was playing. Anna and the King were dancing.

"Come!" the King said, "We do it again!"

And he and Ms. Anna pranced around in such a joyous mess that Nancy couldn't help but smile and bounce up and down on the couch. Then they stopped dancing. One of the guards came in and the whole movie went to the pits. The King ran away to his quarters, Anna ran to her room packed her things and prepared to leave. Then the King was dying, Anna was crying, Nancy was crying.

Weight suddenly shifted on the couch as Robert sat down. He looked at her with a smile and handed her a bowl filled with ramen noodles. Nancy took and ate, watching as the King's son gave orders and she watched Anna cry. Nancy stopped crying when the movie ended and couldn't help but smile when she found out that My Fair Lady was coming up next.

When she finished eating, Nancy took Robert's bowl and put it in the sink. The sink was filled to the brim with dirty dishes. It made Nancy uncomfortable, so she turned on the hot water and washed Robert's dishes for him. When it was all said and done she went and sat back down on the couch.

"Thank you," Robert said, a little surprised.

"Sure," Nancy said with a smile.

The two sat for a while and watched TV until Robert looked at his watch and he sighed. He got up and told Nancy he needed to get some rest and that she should do the same. Nancy nodded, hugged him and kicked off her shoes. She stretched out on the couch and continued to watch the movie. She turned it off after a while and turned over on the couch. She closed her eyes, knowing she would soon be dreaming. She hoped nothing bad would come up.

It didn't.


	12. Why Does This Keep Happening?

Nancy dreamed she was in space. Floating among the stars and planets, tails of comets pushing past her to the next planet. It was so quiet, so magnificently beautiful that Nancy hoped that she would never wake up.

She woke up then, the sun shining through the blinds into Robert's living room. Nancy pulled her phone out of her pocket and turned on the sub-screen. **9:06**. Nancy sighed and got up, feeling a little drowsy. She rubbed her eyes and ruffled her hair. She got up silently and crept over to Robert's room on tip-toes. She could hear the cars outside honking at each other, the clock in the living room tick-tocking, the creak of the support beams as the people in other rooms began to move around. She peaked through the crack in Robert's door. His bathroom light was on and the shower was running. Nancy needed a shower. It'd be nice to clean herself up. Nancy relaxed her feet and walked quietly over to the couch. She sat down and turned on the TV. She flicked over to the nearest news station and slouched back against the sofa pillows. The woman on the screen was arguing with another person about the upcoming election.

"McCain's gonna die of a heart attack and Obama's gonna be assassinated," Nancy said with a sigh.

Nancy knew human nature: If you aren't like everyone else, if you don't fit in, if you're a different color, someone is going to hate you. Nancy hated people like that. She sat for a moment, contemplating why people hated each other. Robert walked out of his room, fully dressed and ready to go. He smiled at Nancy, she smiled back.

"Ready?" he asked.

"Yep... I guess," she sighed.

Nancy got up and grabbed her bag, looked at her phone and put it away again. Robert opened the front door and lead her down the stairs. The two walked across the parking lot and got in Robert's old Chevy. The engine roared to life and soon Robert and Nancy were on the road again. The radio was playing and Nancy was quite content in herself and the music. She looked out the window of the car and caught a glimpse of a sleek black car skimming past them. The windows were tinted so it was hard to tell who was sitting in the back seat. Whoever it was he was wearing a suit, and a very nice one at that. There was something wrong with his face. It sort of looked like the Joker, but the man was too dark to be the pale faced lunatic at the station. Robert turned a corner and Nancy lost sight of him.

She sighed and leaned back in her seat. The song on the radio continued to play, _Welcome to the Jungle_ by Guns 'n Roses. Nancy chuckled a little. It was one of the songs her and the Joker had talked about the night before. Or earlier that morning, whichever made more sense. Nancy looked out the window again. Wayne Industries in all its shining glory hung over the car as they drove by. Her mother had a job there, she enjoyed it. She'd come home sometimes and coo about how extremely attractive Bruce Wayne was.

"He's just so handsome," she'd sigh. "And he's so kind to. He comes in and says 'Hi' to everyone every morning." She would sigh again and flop down in the nearest chair.

Robert's phone buzzed. He turned the music down and picked it up. He read the caller-ID.

"Hey Jim," he said, "What's up?"

"Rob..." came Jim Gordon's haggard voice, "I have some bad news..."

"Did the Joker get out of his cage again?" he asked with a grin.

"God forbid," Nancy mumbled. Robert smacked her lightly on the leg.

Robert turned the corned and started towards Nancy's house. There were police cars in front. Robert froze and stopped the car two houses down.

"Jim," Robert asked, "Where are you?" He got out of the car and told Nancy to stay put.

Jim Gordon walked across the Webber's lush, green lawn, looked at Robert, and hung up his phone. He shoved his hands in his pockets and looked at Nancy in the front seat, he closed his eyes and shook his head. Nancy got out of the car and started down the street. Slowly. So very slowly did time move then. Robert dropped his phone, and the back popped off, the batteries skid across the concrete. He reached for Nancy just as she started to trot down the street. Nancy trotted, then she ran, then she sprinted. She reached the yellow police tape and stopped. Jim Gordon grabbed her by the shoulder and pulled her away.

Nancy saw blood. It pooled on the sidewalk, it came in rivers down her walkway. It spattered against the grass. Shards of glass were scattered in the grass and on the sidewalk. Nancy froze and locked her knees. She doubled over and threw up in the street.

Monica Webber lay on the sidewalk, face down. Her dress was torn and her hair was matted. Monica's skull was cracked in several places and parts of her brain were splattered next to her head. The blood that continued to flow from her head soaked the ground and soaked her hair.

"No..." Nancy said, "No. No NO. NO! NO!" she screamed her face in her hands, her head shaking so hard it looked painful, "NO!" she continued to scream, pulling at her hair. "Why the fuck does this keep happening?" she cried in pain.

She cried and pounded her fists against the asphalt until they bled. She cried when Robert picked her up in his arms. She cried when they took her mothers body away. She cried on the way back to the police station. She cried on the way in. She cried harder when the Joker asked what was wrong.


	13. Monica Webber

~The night before~

Monica stumbled into her house at about 2 in the morning. She was tired and drunk. The women she called "friends" had told her to get a taxi and go home. Oh well, at least they had told her to take a cab and not drive drunk.

"That makes them my friends, right?" Monica grumbled as she set down her purse.

She had gotten in a fight with one of the girls before she left and several punches had been thrown. Monica won of course. She hadn't always been the clean cut, beautiful woman set before crowds of other women at parties. No. she had been through the shitty parts of life. She remembered being pregnant with her daughter Nancy. She had been so protective of her then. She loved her. Lived for her. Would die for her.

"What happened?" she asked herself as she sat down at the bar in her kitchen.

She knew what happened. She didn't like to think about it, though.

_It started when her mother was murdered by one of the groups of gangsters in the small town she lived in, down in New Mexico. Monica was nineteen, Nancy was nearly a year old. Monica went into a deep depression, only surfacing from the deep depths of the black abyss that was her soul to care for Nancy, her newborn daughter. Nancy was so beautiful. She helped Monica through her life without even trying. Monica lived with her father until Nancy was about ten. Right about then Monica realized she needed to leave New Mexico to truly get over her mothers death. _

Monica got up from her chair and walked over to the fridge. She opened it and pulled out a beer, uncapped it and took a long swig. She walked into the living room and sat down on the couch. The house was so quiet without anyone in it. It needed noise. Monica grabbed the TV remote and turned to TCM. The King and I was on. Anna was crying.

"Nancy loves this movie," Monica sighed to herself.

_After Monica decided to leave she told her father. He said he would miss her, but if that was what she needed, she needed to do it. _

_Monica's father died two weeks later._

_Monica packed up Nancy's things and told her they were going somewhere big and magical. Nancy loved magic. She loved books and music and little games. Monica packed her own things and headed out to find the nearest airport. _

_Monica watched the news a lot back then. Gotham was on all the time. _

_Gotham was filled with the rich and famous. _

_Wayne Industries was doing everything they could to get work ever since the company's heir went missing._

"_I'll work there!" she declared to herself._

_So she picked up Nancy and called her brother, Robert. He was so happy to hear from her. She was happy to hear from him too. Robert had moved to Gotham about a year before Nancy was born. After he found out he was an uncle he mailed Monica on a daily basis, demanding pictures and letters from her new niece. Monica hopped on the cheapest plane to Gotham and met Robert at the airport. Nancy was afraid of Robert at first. He was quite intimidating, being six, two and all. Robert immediately fell in love with Nancy and did whatever he could to be around her. He took her to work one time and introduced her to Jim Gordon. Jim was good guy, he had a family of his own. _

"I hate this," Monica hummed to herself.

She looked up at the ceiling and took another swig of her beer.

"Nancy's room's up there,"she said.

Monica hoisted herself off the couch and down the hall. She stumbled up the stairs and down another hallway. She set her beer on one of the tables.

Nancy was always very organized, Monica remembered as she opened the door to her daughters room. She turned on a light. The bed wasn't made, other than that the room was neat and tidy. Nancy's computer was humming in one corner and her TV sat silent and dormant in the otherwise bright room. Monica trudged over to her daughter's bed and sat down on it. The sheets were flannel and extremely comfy. Monica stretched out and kicked off her shoes. She stared up at the ceiling and blinked.

_As soon as Monica got her job at Wayne Industries the money started to pour in. When she got her first paycheck she nearly fainted at how much she was making. At the time she was living in her brothers apartment, letting him take Nancy to work whenever he wanted to. He liked to show her off. Nancy was his pride and joy. His little shining jewel. _

_They were extremely close. She made him happy. Monica took advantage of this. When Nancy was twelve, Monica moved out of Robert's apartment, into the house she lived on now. It was on the good side of town, about ten minutes from work, and not twenty from Robert. Nancy was sad for a while about leaving her Robert, or Robbie as she would sometimes call him. _

_Monica was invited to her first real get together when Nancy was fifteen. It was to celebrate Bruce Wayne's return to the company. There were so many people there. So much to talk about. So much to take in, to look at. Speaking of things to look at, Bruce Wayne was one of those things. He gave Monica the butterflies. Not only was he gorgeous to look at, but he was rich, powerful, and wonderfully personable. He was so nice to everyone that wanted to talk to him. He would make pleasant conversation with guests and peers. He talked to Monica. _

_She nearly fainted. _

"Thats when it all started," Monica said to herself.

She got up and walked out of Nancy's room, down the hall. She grabbed her beer along the way. She stumbled her way down the stairs to the entryway. She stopped and finished the last of her beer. She dropped it on the floor and watched as it shattered against the tile.

"No more," she said. "I can't take it."

Monica walked back up the stairs in a trance.

_Monica remembered the first time Nancy actually saw snow. She danced in it and made snow angels. Monica only stayed outside for a little while. Nancy looked hurt. She stared to figure it out then. Her mother didn't love her as much as she use to. She didn't need her. Nancy stopped being happy then. She stopped calling Robert "Robbie," she never smiled. Monica didn't have time to notice, she was to busy living her own life._

The guilt came crashing down like waves, gallons upon gallons of guilt and sympathy washed over Monica. She smiled.

Monica walked back down the hallway to Nancy's room. She walked across to the window. She hit her head against it, the glass didn't do anything. Monica grabbed hold of the wood paneling that held the little panes of glass in place and leaned back. She brought her head forward and slammed it up against the glass and wood. Blood trickled down her forehead. She turned to look herself in Nancy's mirror. She grinned a maniacal grin and turned to the window again and started to beat her head against it. The glass spiderwebbed and cracked. Monica's blood started to spatter the window pane and the walls. Monica stopped for a moment and touched her forehead. The skin was ragged and bloody. It peeled off in big clumps, Monica realized with a giggle. She started to beat her head against the window again. The glass shattered and tinkled down to the ground. Monica giggled at it, her long blonde hair sticking to her face. She stumbled around Nancy's room and grabbed her chair. She picked it up and swung it at the window, breaking nearly all the little panes of glass. Monica dropped the chair and stumbled back over to the window. She climbed up into the woodwork that held the window together, broken shards of glass cutting into her perfect feet. She grabbed the sides of the window, her hands cut by splintered wood. She leaned forward and grinned, closing her eyes.

"One little piggy," she sighed. She let go of the window with one hand.

"Two-o little piggies" she giggled. She kicked a foot up.

"Three-e-e little piggies!" she squeaked. She let go of the window with her other hand.

"No more piggies," she said with a frown as she fell forward.

She leaned forward a bit, like she was trying to dive. She fell on her head. Her neck gave a sickening snap. Her head hit the concrete and her skull made a meaty crunch when she hit the ground.

Monica Webber did not move. Monica Webber did not breath. Monica Webber stared blankly as the sun rose above the trees. Monica Webber did not react when the woman next door screamed in terror. Monica Webber did not move, because Monica Webber was dead.


	14. Little Nancy's Little Feelings

Robert carried Nancy to his car, put her inside, and shut the door. She was sobbing up a storm, not to mention she was bleeding. Robert walked back down the street to Jim. They looked at each other for a long time.

"Rob," Jim said, his eyebrows creased, "Rob... I'm so sorry I-" he stopped, not knowing what to say.

"I better get to the station," Robert said numbly.

"Yeah, take Nancy, too. Get her hands fixed up," Jim replied.

Robert nodded once and walked away, back toward his car. Nancy was still inside, she was sobbing. She looked like she was dying. Robert walked faster. He reached his car and got inside. Nancy sat still. He looked at her and tried to say something, it didn't work. He sighed and started the engine.

Not ten minutes later they were driving past Wayne Industries, Nancy stared at the giant tower as they passed.

"This is all his fault, you know," she managed between breaths.

Robert looked at her, he couldn't think of anything to say again. He sighed and kept driving. They turned the corner to the station and pulled into a parking space. Robert turned off the car and sat still for a while. He looked over at Nancy, she was curled up in a little ball and quiet sobs shook her whole being. Her breathing was ragged and wouldn't stop shaking. Robert got out of his seat and slammed his door. Nancy continued to sob.

'This is too much for one kid to take all at once,' he thought to himself.

He opened her door and pulled her out of the car. She clung to his jacket and continued to cry on his shoulder. Too many tears. Robert walked up the stairs, down the hall, and into the main office. Several heads popped out of office doors and up from desks. Several greeted him happily before they realized what, or who, he had in his arms.

The Joker strode over to the farthest corner of his cage, trying to see what was causing all the little people in the offices behind him to fuss and talk in low whispers. He saw her then, the little shaking figure in Robbie's arms. Nancy was sobbing so quietly, so shakily, the Joker thought she might be having a seizure. He saw Robert walk over to his office and curse to himself.

"...shit," he hissed, "Who was in my office last?"

Everyone glanced at one of the new secretaries. The poor woman shrunk back into her own office. Robert cursed some more and set Nancy down in the chair across from the Joker. She formed back into a ball and her shoulders continued to shake. Robert glared up at the Joker and gave him a look that would have killed most fully grown male elephants. To Robert's dismay, the Joker was not a fully grown male elephant, so it did not affect him. He continued to stare at Nancy. Robert walked away to his office.

"Nancy?" the Joker cooed, "Nancy? You okay?"

Nancy looked up at him, the Joker froze. Her eyes were filled with such hate and malice and pain that the Joker could only stare back for a moment.

"I'll take that as a no..." he trailed off. "You wanna talk about it?" He grinned.

He was taunting her, she knew that. Nancy uncurled from her seat and stared back at him. He licked his lips and continued to grin.

"Maybe not?" he giggled.

Nancy stood up.

"S'matter? Did someone hurt _little_ Nancy's _little_ feelings?" he started to laugh.

Everyone in the office looked up.

The Joker stopped laughing and opened his eyes. He took a step back, it was too late. Nancy reached through the bars of his cage and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt. His head hit the metal poles of his cage when she yanked him forward. He rubbed his forehead and stared down at her, quite a bit surprised.

"That hurt ya' know," he chuckled.

"You stupid son of a bitch," Nancy seethed, "You don't even know what I'm going through right now. Not one fucking clue. No..." She licked her lips.

"No," she said, "You don't care either do ya? Nope. You could give two shits less. You just like fuckin' with peoples heads... Robert told me that. You can't do anything else, you get other guys to do your job. Yeah... yeah you just sit back and watch the fireworks while a bunch a' crazy bastards get theirs faces blown off."

Robert stood in the doorway of his office, unable to move. The Joker clicked his tongue at Nancy and reached through the bars of his cell. He grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her forward. Nancy let out a little gasp, the Joker continued to stare down at her like a giant hawk. Nancy couldn't move, her whole body pressed against the bars of his cage. She glanced at Robert, who didn't move. Nancy couldn't breath, she couldn't move, she couldn't speak. The same went for everyone in the big office. None of them moved.

The Joker brought his hand up to Nancy's face. She didn't move. The Joker brushed his thumb along her cheek where tears continued to flow, and leaned forward.

Robert moved. He sprang across the room like an angry cat and yanked Nancy away from the Joker so hard that he hit his head on the bars of his cell again. Robert shoved Nancy in her chair, turned around, and pulled out his gun. He grabbed the Joker by the collar and brought him forward.

"Hi Robbie," the Joker giggled.

Robert jabbed his gun under the Joker's chin, "I'll do it you stupid fuck," he hissed, "I'll blow your fucking head off right here, right fucking now..."

"Yeah Robbie, do it," the Joker smiled, "Do it right here. Right in front of little Nancy. I bet she'd like that."

He grabbed Robert's gun and jabbed it harder. He tried to lick his scars again and grinned a big toothy grin. Robert pulled his gun back and shoved it in it's holster. The Joker grinned and walked backward to his bench. He sat down and smiled at Nancy. He pretended to bite his nails as he licked away Nancy's salty tears. She stared back at him blankly and stood up when Robert grabbed her by the shoulder. He eased her back into his office and closed the door.

The Joker laughed and laughed until Nancy stuck her head out the door. He stopped rolling around and looked at her. She looked like she was trying to say something, she failed. Instead she let out an angry sigh and slammed the door. The Joker grinned at her and stretched out on the little metal bench in his cell. He looked over at the people behind desks, they gawked at him like fish. He laughed again.


	15. Wake Up Call

Robert had brought Nancy's bag in from his car. She now sat in his office cursing herself for putting her iPod on shuffle. The tiny microchip inside thought it would be very funny to take every awkward, sexual song Nancy had uploaded to it, and play them one after another:

_Candyman_

_Lying is the Most Fun a Girl Can Have Without Taking Her Clothes Off_

_Ain't No Other Man_

_Goodnight and Go_

_Pour Some Sugar on Me_

All of the songs pounded in her skull like a bad high. Nancy sighed and turned off her iPod and shoved it in her bag. She laid her head against the cold, fake, wood of Robert's desk and closed her eyes. Apparently that was a mistake.

_Everything around Nancy was swimmy and swirly as she walked down the hall to her 6th hour math class. Her face was clear of any emotion as she walked in. Cody looked up from his papers and smiled at her. _

_Cody was a nice boy; smart, handsome, successful, and in football. He was a good person, and a lady's man to top it all off. She smiled back at him and continued toward her seat. _

_She smiled at the group of chattering girls in the back and they smiled back, the girl from first hour was there. She was nice too: blonde hair, blue eyes and a wonderful complexion. She wasn't haughty about it either, she got along with everyone. It was nice to have someone like that around. Nancy stopped in front of a desk and stared down at the person in the seat. Jeremy Talos finally sensed Nancy's presence and looked up. He smiled a big smile at her and got up to hug her. Jeremy played soccer, was on the chess team, and was one of Nancy's best friends. They chatted for a bit while Nancy sat her things on her desk. Their teacher, Mr. Brian (or Brain as most of the students called him), came in and told everyone to sit down._

_The lesson was boring and normal for everyone in class, so Mr. "Brain" resorted to telling everybody about how much easier school was when he was growing up._

"_Now that I think about it," he said, "if I were to take one of your guy's tests right now if I were your age, I'd probably fail. No. I would fail, plain and simple." _

_Everyone laughed and smiled and leaned back in their chairs. Everything was so relaxed up until that point that no one expected to hear Mrs. Higgs, the math teacher across the hall, scream at the top of her lungs as several large men thundered down the hallway._

_Mr. Brian stood up and strode across the room, closed the door and locked it as tightly a s he could. Everyone heard more screaming and gunfire. The chatter-girls in the back of the room started to whimper and squirm around in their seats. Nancy looked at Jeremy and he looked at her. She looked at Cody, Cody looked at her. She looked at the girl from first hour and got nothing but a blank, terrified stare in return. Nancy looked at her teacher, he was pacing around the room, cell phone in hand. He tried to explain the situation as slowly and calmly as possible. _

_The door burst open._

_Everyone screamed. _

_Everything moved in slow motion._

_Nancy watched as the men blew her friends faces away..._

"Nancy!" can Robert's voice, "Nancy! Wake up!"

Nancy's eyes snapped open. She was on the floor, curled up in a little ball. Her throat hurt and her face was covered in tears. Robert hovered over her, his hands gripped her shoulders roughly. Nancy looked him in the eyes and tried to say something, she couldn't. Instead she threw her arms around his neck and sobbed against his shoulder. Robert sighed and stood up a little. Nancy continued to sob quietly to herself.

The two stood together until Nancy pulled away and wiped her tears.

"It all happened again," she said shakily, "Everything... everyone died again... all of them... all over again."

Robert held her close again and glanced over his shoulder. The Joker stood in his cage, Jim Gordon standing close by. Robert nodded at them and went back to holding Nancy.

"I wonder how far it got," Jim said to himself. The Joker looked at him and licked his lips.

"I used to do that ya' know," he muttered, "Wake up screaming in the middle of the night... I never had anyone to listen to me though. No one likes me like that much if you haven't noticed." He finished with a sick little smile.

Jim sighed, "For once I'm almost glad you're here Joker... she could have gone into shock again."

"Oh, and we don't want that, now do we?" the Joker sniggered.

Jim glared at him and ran his hand through his hair. "Shut up Joker," he sighed.

/|\

Robbie was outside, waiting for Jim to show back up from Nancy's house. He made Nancy go into his office and stay there, he brought in her bag. For the next fifteen minutes or so, the only sounds coming from Robbie's office were the occasional remarks from Nancy to her MP3 player.

Usually something like, "Your not helping," or "Shut up you douche," or, sometimes, "Oh you know what!" That last one always made the Joker giggle a little. Nancy was cute when she was angry. Her face would get a little flushed, her lips would pout a little, and her eyes would fill with little, green, fires.

Then there was no noise. Sometimes no noise was good, other times... not so much.

"Nancy?" the Joker asked. No answer.

"Nancy-y?" he called. Still no answer.

There was noise, but not the most pleasant of sorts; it was a little scrape of wood against concrete, and a thud. Not the nicest of thuds either, no, it was a low, rough, thud, like someone, the someone being Nancy, had just fallen out of a chair.

"Uh oh," the Joker hummed.

Little thrashing noises came from the office then, little shuffles of shoes and clothes across the concrete floor of Robert's office. The Joker stood up and grabbed the bars of his cage, trying and failing to see through the blinds, into Robert's office. Nancy started shrieking.

"No!" she shouted, "No. No! NO!"

"Robbie..." the Joker called.

"Cody! No!" she screamed. She trashed around some more.

"Robbie!" the Joker called again.

"NO! NO! Jeremy! Jeremy! Let him go! Let me go!" Nancy howled.

"Rob!" the Joker shouted, rattling the bars of his cage.

"No! N-no! M-make it stop!" Nancy sobbed.

"Rob!" the Joker shouted again. He shook his cage again.

Robert strode in with Jim trailing behind.

"What?" Robert barked.

"No! Leave 'er alone! Just leave us alone! No! God- Stop!" Nancy cried.

Robert nearly broke down the door trying to get in. Nancy was writhing on the floor, tears streaming down her face, and arms curled around her entire frame. Robert picked her up and shook her.

"Nancy!" he shouted, "Nancy! Wake up!"

Nancy's eyes snapped open. She curled up against him sobbing, wailing, and shaking. The Joker lowered his shoulders and sighed a little. He draped his arms through the bars of his cage and leaned his forehead against them. He hadn't heard anyone scream like that in a long time.

Nancy continued to sob against Robert's shoulder until she whispered something to him. Probably something about her friends. She slouched against him again and held him close.

The Joker felt a pang of raw jealousy then. Green, toxic, envy pulsed through his veins as he watch Robert hold Nancy.

Robert looked over his shoulder at him and nodded a little. It was odd to the Joker.

"I wonder how far it got," Jim said to himself. The Joker looked at him and licked his lips.

"I used to do that ya' know," he muttered, "Wake up screaming in the middle of the night... I never had anyone to listen to me though. No one likes me like that if you haven't noticed." he finished with a sick little smile.

Jim sighed, "For once I'm almost glad you're here Joker... she could have gone into shock again."

"Oh, and we don't want that, now do we?" the Joker sniggered.

Jim glared at him and ran his hand through his hair. "Shut up Joker," he sighed.

The Joker giggled.


	16. Death in the Business

Bruce Wayne sat in his office atop Wayne Industries and scribbled his signature on every paper Alfred or Lucius handed him. It was boring right around this time of day, noon that is. Everyone was gone for lunch and out with friends. All was quiet in the secluded office except for the light hum of the computer and Bruce's slow, even breathing. He never looked up from the slowly depleting pile of forms on his desk except at his watch to check the time, that was until the quiet swish of his door attracted his attention.

"Afternoon, sir," came Alfred's thick British accent.

"Afternoon, Alfred," Bruce said with a smile, happy to see something besides paper.

"Sir," he began. "I have some bad news."

"What happened?" Bruce asked, hoping it wasn't anything about the stock market.

"We seem to have lost one of our workers, sir," Alfred said in a grim tone.

"Who?" Bruce asked, leaning back in his seat, "Did they quite? Find another job?"

"Not quite sir..." Alfred said, not exactly sure how to put his thoughts into words.

"Well tell me," Bruce insisted. "It can't be that bad... can it? The Joker hasn't gotten out again has he? Please say no..." He rubbed his temples.

"No... no sir. It seems that Monica Webber's body was found earlier this morning," Alfred said after a deep sigh, "She jumped out of her daughters second-story window..."

Bruce leaned back in his chair and rubbed his face, "Didn't I meet her daughter? Nancy, wasn't it?"

"Yes sir, when Monica was first hired," Alfred said, looking down at the floor.

Bruce sighed, "When's the funeral?"

"In a couple of weeks I suppose..." Alfred replied in the same grim tone as before.

Bruce propped his elbows on his desk and held his face in his hands, shaking his head. He knew there was something wrong with Monica. It might've been in the way she disregarded her daughter when they all first met. Monica had simply brushed her off anytime she tried to hold her hand or cling to her sleeve. Nancy was very quiet. So quiet in fact that she could have left and no one would have noticed.

Lately however, Monica had been so caught up in her own life that when Bruce asked about Nancy, Monica had to think about who he was talking about for a moment. Poor Monica must have finally realized that she was mistreating her daughter and snapped.

But out of Nancy's window? Of all places? Couldn't she have done it out of her own or something? It seemed more haunting that way, now Nancy would always have to deal with the fact that her mother had thrown herself from her bedroom window. There just seemed to be something wrong with it.

Bruce shook his head again and looked up at Alfred, "Does Nancy know yet?" he asked.

"I'm not absolutely sure sir," Alfred said, "I could check if you like."

"If you don't mind..." Bruce sighed.

"Of course sir," Alfred said with a little bow.

And with that he was gone, out the door and around the corner. Bruce sighed again and looked back down at his papers, there seemed to be less now. He turned on the TV hanging in the corner of his office and flicked through the channels until he found the news. The reporter on screen was going over a story about a school shooting at South End High School. That was Nancy's school. Bruce sighed again and turned the TV off.

"What's the world coming too?" he sighed.


	17. Wired

Victoria skid from one corner of the room to the other like a giant lanky cat, her pale skin and dark hair making her seem like a black and white blur from across the room. Mike, on the other hand, sat neatly in the middle of the room and seemed to be tinkering with some odd little contraption. Mike was a very squirmy little kid and had a thing for acting as if he were 10 years old. However, being a tall, scraggly kid had its advantages, one of them being the ability to be the running version of Michael Phelps. Amy and Jason sat on opposite sides of the room and tapped away at computers in their laps. The two were very similar in appearance, which made sense considering they were brother and sister. Bruce, not really knowing what to do, leaned up against one of the other far walls near the doorway and kept watch. Bruce was a very large man, about 6 feet 8 inches worth of brute strength. Bruce was black, and very proud of it in more than one offensive and crude way.

"Mike," he asked suddenly, "What the hell is that?"

Mike looked up in surprised and smiled behind his mask, "This, Brucey, is..." he trailed off. "...is something I am unable to remember now that you've asked... what it basically does is it takes the codes from those computers," he motioned to Jason and Amy. They waved a little, "and puts them in here... aaaand..."

"It makes the little do-hickey look for wires and cameras!" Victoria announced proudly.

"Yeah," Mike finished, "and if it finds any it tells us where they are so we can... you know... find 'em."

Bruce was silent for a moment as he computed Mike and Victoria's jumbled explanation. When everything finally clicked he sighed and leaned back up against the wall. Amy and Jason looked up at each other and nodded. They both got up and walked to the little scanning device in the middle of the room. They plugged their computers in and made a few minor adjustments, the little contraption hummed to life. The two unplugged their computers and motioned for Victoria and Mike to stop what they were doing.

"You guys got cellphones?" Amy asked.

"Yeah," everyone but Jason mumbled.

"Turn 'em off."

"'Kay," they all said, taking the mobiles from their pockets and switching them off.

Amy and Jason did the same and unplugged their computers. Soon, everyone was near the door except Jason, who gave Amy the thumbs up and flipped a switch. He trotted back over to the group and waited until the little machine stopped whirring and humming. When it stopped it dinged, Jason and Amy immediately took the laptops in their hands and plugged them into the device. After about five minutes they stood up and nodded a little.

"Room's clean," Amy announced. Everyone let out a sigh of relief.

"Let's set it up," Bruce sighed.

Bruce, Mike, and Jason walked out to the white van waiting outside with their supplies while Amy and Victoria packed up the little scanning device and wires and laptops. And just for a moment, Amy and Victoria felt very small. The walls of the empty warehouse stretched in every direction into what seemed to be Oblivion.

"So," came Amy's quiet voice, "did you volunteer? … Or did someone sign you up?"

"Volunteered!" Victoria answered happily.

"Lucky," Amy sighed, "Jason signed me up... I mean really, what kinda shit is that?"

"You didn't want to?" Victoria asked, aghast.

"No," she sighed, "I was gonna be a respectable computer technician. But, no. Jason just felt like screwing up my whole "life plan" thing. Douche bag."

"Oh..." Victoria said, "that sucks..."

"What sucks?" came Mike's happy voice.

Victoria jumped nearly out of her pasty skin, "God... Dammit Mike!!" she shrieked.

She reached around to hit him, "Wait! Wait-wait-wait-wait. Wait... look what I can do..."

Mike balanced an empty box on his head. Victoria was completely taken aback by his little stunt and was soon in a near trance as she watched him.

"Mike!" Bruce barked, "Help me carry some of this shit!"

"Wait!" Mike shouted, "Look-look-look-look..." he squeaked, pointing to his head.

Jason sighed at him and set down his box, turned around, and went back for another. Bruce, on the other hand, set down his box, walked over to Mike and swatted the box on his head to the ground. Mike looked very hurt.

"Whadya gonna do now?" Bruce asked spreading his arms.

"That was mean..." Mike said in a tiny voice.

"Mike," Bruce said, "Help me- you still listenin'?- help me get the boxes from the van, or -or- Imma rip ya' dick off. 'Kay?"

"Okay," Mike replied miserably.

The two trudged off and got more boxes from the van. Meanwhile, Amy and Victoria were taking said boxes, and unloading them. Most of them either contained money, guns, ammunition, or food. One hand some decks of cards.

"So," Mike said, setting down one of the last boxes, "Run me through this whole "plan" thing again."

"Boss said three weeks in the slammer'd be all he need to get in, get hostages, and get out," Amy said.

"Why three weeks?" Mike asked, "Doesn't even make sense."

"Three weeks would probably be just enough time for Gotham to figure, "Oh we're safe, Joker's in prison, nothing to worry about. La de da de da"," Bruce said from behind them, "Then all of a sudden, BAM! Gotham's gonna have a lot to worry about 'cause suddenly the Clown Prince of Crime is back in business."

"Now that makes sense," Mike said.

"Mike," came Jason's cool voice, "Why don't you make yourself useful and unload boxes?"

"Fine, mister grumpy pants," Mike mumbled to himself.

"Mike, think of it this way," Bruce said, " When we're done, we can play cards."

Mike laughed and helped unload the rest of the boxes.

"So, how many days has it been now?" he asked.

"Five," Bruce said.

"Won't be long now," Jason said, "and we'll have something to do besides unpack boxes."

Victoria sighed a dreamy little sigh and went back to unpacking, too. Everyone gave her a look of confusion and went back to unpacking things.

"Who'dya think he'll, you know, kidnap or whatever," Mike asked.

"Cop maybe," Bruce said, "Or a chick, people have fits when chicks get kidnapped."

"She'll probably be ugly," came Victoria's grumble.

"Vic," Mike said, "You got the hots fer J don't cha?"

"...maybe," Victoria replied.

"Christ," Amy sighed.

"_Jesus_ Christ," Mike corrected.

"Shuddup Mike," Bruce said.


	18. 68 Mustang

Robert and Jim talked for about ten minutes before Robert decided it was time to go home. Nancy was sitting in the main office, waiting for him to finish his little chat. When he stepped from his office he seemed very distraught and ill at ease.

"S'matter Rob?" Nancy asked blankly.

Robert shook his head, "A lot," he sighed.

He and Jim had been discussing what would happen to Nancy now that Monica was dead. She, of course, would stay with Robert until she could support herself. One of the other things that concerned the two of them was Monica's possessions: who would they go to? Nancy? Robert? God forbid the government sent them to the Salvation Army. If Monica were alive she would have a fit.

But Monica didn't matter right now, Nancy mattered. After a while Robert and Jim decided they would just have to find a good lawyer and pray everything worked out.

"We going?" Nancy asked, looking down at the floor.

"Yeah, come on," Robert sighed.

Nancy was embarrassed. Not only had she made a fool of Robert, but she had made a fool of herself, too, screaming like that. She was still scared though, that the images would come back. She'd see the blood and bone and brain, spattered like inkblots on paper across the linoleum. The screaming would come back, then the cold chilling silence when the dark deed was said and done.

Nancy got up from her place in the hard wooden chair and picked up her things, not taking her eyes from the floor. Everyone seemed to be staring at her now, whether in malice or pity she could not tell. She could, however, feel the cold creeping feeling of a dark pair of eyes watching her every move; the way she moved, the way she breathed, the way she carried herself. The man in the cage watched her. As she turned to leave, Robert reached around and gave her arm a good squeeze before walking ahead of her. When they reached the doorway, Nancy stopped. Robert looked back at her.

A thought had been buzzing around in Nancy's head since she woke from her nightmare. It beat against the inside of her skull and stung her brain every time she thought about it to long. She took in a deep shuddering breath and clutched at her bag.

"Joker," she said loud enough for him to hear.

"Hm?" he answered, the smile on his face made apparent in his voice.

"It-" she stopped and struggled to put her thoughts into words. "Those weren't your men... the guys that shot up the class-" she stopped again. "Were they?" she struggled to keep her voice even.

"Depends," came his dark voice in response, "They wearing masks?"

"No," Nancy said with a shiver, the image of their cold, grinning faces coming into view.

"Then nope," he stated.

"'Kay," came Nancy's reply after a moment.

She dug through her bag and pulled out her headphones.

"We should probably get your car from school huh?" Robert said. "Ya' know, before someone decides to steal it."

"Yeah," Nancy said.

"You got yourself a car Nancy?" the Joker grinned.

"Yeah," she said again.

"What kind?" he asked.

"Don't tell 'im," Robert said, "Just give 'im another reason to kill you."

"That nice huh?" the Joker giggled.

"Yeah," Nancy said, a small smile creeping across her face, "'68 Mustang with racing stripes."

"That settles it," the Joker said in a sarcastic tone, " I am going to kill you. Just for your car."

Nancy laughed a little. The Joker froze up and licked his lips, he didn't like to be laughed at. It wasn't just that he didn't like to be laughed at, it was that he was being laughed at by Nancy. The Nancy he couldn't hate, but he couldn't like either. There was too much to her. She was too complicated. It was like she could be the Mary Sue, the weakling, or she could be the chick from movies that was hot... but she'd kick your ass.

It was hard for him to read her. Most people were freaking picture books to him. With her it was different. It was like there was so much to read so fast that he couldn't keep up. There was to much to take in. He found it odd how well she could hold herself under pressure, how well she took things, how quickly she recovered. That, however, isn't always the greatest ability. That usually meant that everything that had happened was held up somewhere in her head, festering and brooding until she snapped. Boy would that be fun.

'Nancy on a killing spree, ah the possibilities,' the Joker thought to himself with a smile.

"C'mon Nancy," Robert said, "We better get going."

Nancy nodded and followed him out the door. When they got to Robert's car Nancy shoved her MP3 player in her pocket and took off her headphones. She shoved them in her bag and opened the door. Robert started up the car and paused for a moment.

"You okay? I mean really okay?" he asked looking at her.

"I'm fine Rob," Nancy said with a smile.

"Alright," he said, putting the car in reverse.

They drove in silence for about twenty minutes until Robert leaned over and turned on the radio. ACDC was playing. Nancy hummed the words to herself and looked out her window. They were passing by Wayne Industries again. The towering pillar of midnight black glass and stainless steel doorways gave the whole building a look of futuristic evil. Nancy gulped and leaned back in her seat, staring through the windshield.

"Wanna get your car?" Robert asked.

"Sure," Nancy said.

The radio started to play another song, _Beautiful_ by Christina Aguilera. Nancy blinked at it and cocked her head to one side. She had this song on her iPod, but she hadn't heard it on the radio in ages. She stared to sing along with it. Nancy hadn't sang anything in a long time. Robert looked at her out of the corner of his eye and smiled. Nancy could hit every note and repeat every word. It was quite captivating. When the song was over Nancy sighed and leaned back in her seat. Robert just smiled.

When they pulled into the student parking lot, the pair was surprised to find that nearly the entire parking lot was empty. Not that it would have taken long to find Nancy's car anyway.

"There it is," Robert said pointing out the windshield.

Nancy smiled at her car and got out of Robert's. She dug for her keys and opened the driver's side door. When the engine started, Nancy relaxed, the sound of the V8 under the hood making a thunderous racket. It was so nice. She turned on the radio and plugged her iPod up to it. She found the nearest Def Leppard song and turned it up as loud as possible. When Robert honked at her she looked up from the steering wheel and smiled.

On the way out of the parking lot Nancy flicked to another song and turned it down a little.

_Beautiful_ by Christina Aguilera, and Nancy sang it again.


	19. Shower

**Okay, since I haven't done the whole disclaimer thing for all -what?- 18 chapters...? Here you go: **

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Dark Knight... I wish I did though. Well not actually own the Dark Knight- don't like him much you know. I mean really-**

**Everyone: Get on with it!**

**Jess: Ah yes, of course. Sorry. **

/|\

Nancy looked at her radio and sighed.

**8:37**.

She had stopped singing a while back and now sat in silence... kind of. _Speeding Cars_ by Imogen Heap blasted through the speakers making the entire car vibrate. Nancy loved it.

Her phone buzzed.

"Hey ob," she said.

"Hey Nance," he said, "Apartment's just around the corner."

"Gotcha," she said, "right behind 'ya."

She hung up and turned the corner with Robert and parked.

When they got up to the room, Nancy took off her shoes and settled into Robert's old worn out couch. She asked him when she would be able to go home and get her things. He said he wasn't sure.

"Rob?" she asked, "Can I... can I take a shower?"

Robert looked at her, a little surprised, "Well, sure you can kid," he said.

Nancy smiled and hopped up from the couch and pranced over to the one bathroom, tucked away in Robert's own bedroom. The room was dark of course, since Robert hadn't been in there all day, and by now it was nearly 9 o'clock. She went in and shut the door behind her, blocking out the noise from the TV in the living room.

In the bathroom she shed her clothes and stepped in the shower. The water was warm when she turned it on. The loofa hanging from a suction-cupped hook on the wall was for her, and her alone. Nancy had spent so many nights at Robert's house while her mother was out partying that he had taken the liberty of buying something to wash herself with. It was a kind motion, though she believed she didn't deserve it.

While she stood washing her short blonde hair, she hummed Frank Sinatra to herself. Nancy's mother had named her after Frank Sinatra's daughter, Nancy Sinatra. Nancy liked her name. It used to make her feel famous and special, being named after a celebrity. Not any more though, those feelings vanished a long time ago.

In the mist of her thought process she realized the water spouting from the shower head had become very cold. She stepped out of the shower and grabbed a towel from a hook on the wall. She put on the clothes she had worn for the past few days and sighed. She could deal with it for a while, but soon she would need a new pair underwear. The awkward thought made her laugh a little.

She walked back into the living room and sat next to Robert. She had already run a comb through her short spiky hair. The giant jacket that Robert had let her borrow now hung from the coat rack by Robert's apartment door.

"Rob?" Nancy asked.

"Hm?" he replied.

"When do you think I can get back into the house? Just so I can get clothes... you know..." she mumbled.

"Don't know," he sighed, "Won't know for a while. Soon hopefully."

"And if all else fails, I'll take you to Wal-Mart." he smiled.

Nancy laughed, "Thanks Rob."

"Sure thing kid."

Nancy's phone buzzed. She swallowed, she knew it was Carol. It was always Carol. She pulled the phone from her pocket and got up.

"Hello?" she asked when she flipped it open.

"Nancy?" Carol's voice said.

"Hey Carol," Nancy said with a worried smile.

"Hey! What's the matter? You sound worried," Carol asked in a concerned tone.

Nancy paused, not really sure if now was the right time to come out to Carol, although, it wasn't like she couldn't trust her...

"If I tell you something you have to promise me several things, okay?" Nancy answered slowly.

"Sure thing sweety, you don't have to worry," Carol said in her motherly tone.

"Okay, first: Don't freak out. Second: You can't tell anyone yet, it's kind of...big..." Nancy hummed.

"Sure thing, you got it. My lips are sealed," Carol promised.

"'Kay," Nancy hummed again, "My mom, she's... dead. She jumped out my bedroom window."

There was a long pause on the other end. For a moment, Nancy thought Carol might have hung up but then came her quiet response.

"Are you okay?" came the quiet voice.

"I'm not sure yet," Nancy said.

"Where are you? Do you need to talk? Do you want me to came over?" streamed Carol's questions.

"No, I'm fine. I'll be okay for now... I hope," Nancy responded as quickly as possible.

"Christ, I call you to tell you when school starts, and now... damn," Carol sighed.

"When does school start?" Nancy asked, suddenly reminded of her high school campus.

"Next week," Carol responded quickly, "But damn, your not joking are you? Ha, joking."

"Yes, yes. Joking, Joker. We get it Carol, its funny," Nancy responded, happy to get away from the subject of her mother.

"Speaking of," Carol said in a chipper voice, "How is the scary bastard?"

"He's not scary," Nancy retorted with a smile.

"Sure, he's not scary," Carol said. Nancy could nearly hear her rolling her eyes.

"Alright, alright," Nancy said, "He's scary. But just a little."

Carol laughed, told Nancy she'd see her next week, and hung up. Nancy went and sat next to Robert on the couch.

"School starts back up next week," she said.

"Already?" Robert sighed.

"I know, right? Ridiculous," Nancy sighed back.

"We may end up going to Wal-Mart sooner than I thought," Robert smirked.

"I'll be fine for a while, but I would appreciate more – you know – underwear," Nancy mumbled.

"I'll leave that to you," Robert replied in a some what bashful tone.

"Don't worry Rob," Nancy laughed.

"You need to sleep, or try anyway," Robert said getting up from the couch.

"Yeah," Nancy said.

She was nervous at the mere thought. Scared that the images might come back to haunt her. But she didn't worry to much, she was much too tired to bother.


	20. Eric the DemiGod

**Holy. Crap. You have no idea how awesome -no- epic it is that so many of you like my story. I just can't get over how many people have given my story good reviews. Its absolutely insane. So here's to you, reviewer! You awesome SOB you!**

/|\

The police let Nancy back into her house. She finally changed out of her old clothes and into some new ones: A pair of jeans, a Def Leppard t-shirt, and her "anarchy" converses. She grabbed her MacBook off her desk and a suitcase from her closet. She would have to pack clothes for a few weeks, she wasn't allowed back into the house for another few days, or until the clean up crew showed up anyway.

The white walls of her room were now spotted with spatters of black blood, and the area near her window was sprinkled with glass. The chair her mother had used to break the window was broken and lying near her bed. The walls near her door, however, were clean and white. Just white.

Nancy pulled open her closet and pulled out jeans, t-shirts, button downs, and sweaters. She grabbed another bag from the corner of her closet and opened her underwear drawer, stuffing everything she could into the thing. She took her computer and placed it neatly in her messenger bag. She grabbed the charger for it before setting everything in the hallway.

Robert walked up from downstairs and smiled sadly at her.

"You alright kid?" he asked.

Nancy paused and looked back at her room, then back at her shoes

"Will the walls in my classes look like that?" she asked.

Robert looked over her shoulder back into her room and sighed.

"Not anymore," he said, "They'll be pink though, unless they already repainted everything..."

"'Kay," Nancy replied.

She put her messenger bag around one shoulder, the other bag over the other and grabbed the handle of her suitcase. She looked back at her room one more time before turning and walking down the stairs.

/|\

Nancy went to school the next week. Carol knocked her to the ground in a hug when she saw her. Anthony helped her to her feet. Eric, however, was acting quite off key. He was quiet and had his arms wrapped around his knees which were held close to his chest.

"S'matter Eric?" Nancy asked.

"I thought I was going to die..." Eric barely whispered, "When those men came in the room, I froze... I-I didn't know what to do..." he trailed off.

"Its over Eric," Nancy said, kneeling down next to him, "Everything's fine now. All we do now pick up the pieces and hope everybody made it to where ever they were bound."

Eric looked at her and unfolded himself from his uncomfortable position on the ground, "How can you say that?"

"'Cause I saw the worst of it and I'm... okay now," Nancy said with a shrug.

"I think I saw God..." Eric said, holding his hand to his head.

"Now, now Eric. Lets not get out of hand here," Nancy said nervously.

Eric never acted like this. He was always so quiet and reserved. A nice kid. Now he was just acting scary.

"Does seeing God make me a demi-God?" Eric asked, a disturbed smile crawling across his face.

"No," Nancy said in a flat tone, "If you actually saw the face of God you'd be dead. Sorry Eric, no Messiahship for you."

"I survived though!" Eric stood up, "That makes me like God right?"

"Eric, maybe you should see the councilor," Nancy said getting to her feet.

"Jesus was a councilor!" Eric paused, "Not so much as he was, but _is_ a councilor!"

The bell for class rang, Nancy got her things. Anthony and Carol walked off to class together and Eric strode off to his. Nancy stood for a moment and thought about Eric's rambling.

"Shit," she sighed, "I thought I was gonna be fucked up in the head."

Well great, Eric thinks he's the Messiah and all I can do is try and convince him that Jesus would probably make a bigger entrance than through a confused high school student, Nancy thought to herself. Great.

/|\

First Hour: English

Second Hour: Psychology

Third Hour: help random teachers deliver notes and paperwork to other teachers (and listen to her English teacher rant about how stupid the school board is)

Fourth Hour: Astronomy

Lunch

Fifth: Math

Sixth: History

The day went normally considering the events that had occurred not a week earlier. Psychology was especially dramatic. Their teacher, Mr. Johnson, limped into class on a cane; he'd been shot three times: once in the calf and twice in the thigh.

"Can we start calling you House?" Anthony asked from his seat next to Nancy. They smiled at each other.

"Only if I get to be a wise-ass and give you guys medical advise," Mr. Johnson laughed.

"Deal," Anthony laughed back.

Math was a difficult class to crawl through. Nearly everyone was sobbing, hugging, or praying. The sorrow in the room was tangible as Nancy strode in through the threshold. At one point, she too started to cry. She found herself hugging people she didn't know; the chatty girls in the back, the jocks, the emos, the gangsters. It would be a long time until the mental scars healed. Nancy was in for a long ride down Recovery Lane.

/|\

By the end of the day, Nancy had given and received more hugs then nearly anyone in the whole school. It was hard to keep from crying through every class. Everyone felt the pain, whether they knew people or not, they felt it. The deep, dark depression that could be felt in the air as you walked through hallways, into classrooms, the library, the cafeteria, was the sole substance hanging thickly in the usually carefree air. Everywhere was the pain of loss and suffering of souls.

And now Nancy sat in her car and breathed a deep sigh of relief as the rest of the cars in the parking lot filtered away. The shroud of black death lifted, revealing lifeless, black asphalt and the cold gray concrete that lined the streets. The whole thing seemed a bit off until the rumble of engines around her woke Nancy from her inner thought.

She sat up and blinked at the sun as it set over the campus. It was very quiet now as she sat in her sleeping car. She didn't like it. It was much too quiet for her, so she took out her keys and brought her car to life. The engine rumbled at first then started to purr as Nancy pulled away from her space.

Robert had asked her to drive to the station after school until they could get things sorted with her house.

Nancy remembered her mother then. Her funeral would be this week. Thursday to be exact. She wondered who would show up, who wouldn't. Carol and Anthony would come and help her if she needed it, Robert, Jim, maybe even Bruce Wayne. The thought of him made Nancy's stomach hurt.

She still hated him for all his parties and gatherings and fundraisers... all the things her mother would go to just to get a life.

"I really hate him," Nancy grumbled to herself.

She pulled into the police station parking lot and grabbed her messenger bag from the passenger seat. When she walked through the doors to the main office, she was surprised to find Robert waiting for her.

"Hey Rob," Nancy smiled.

"Hey Nance," he smiled back.

She took her seat in the chair in front of the Joker's cage and sighed. It'd been a long day.

"S'matter Nancy?" the Joker asked.

"Eric thinks he's Jesus," Nancy said with another sigh.

"What?" he asked, leaning forward a bit to hear her better.

"One of my friends thinks he's Jesus 'cause he says he saw God!" Nancy said waving her hands around a bit.

"Some interesting friends you have there Nancy dear," the Joker said with a grin.

Nancy sighed and nodded, "When the school got shot up, some guys came into his room too, and started yelling. His class was one of the few that wasn't shot at to much," she let out a short harsh laugh and continued, "He got shot though I guess. One of the guys accidently pulled the trigger and shot 'im in the arm... whoop di doo!" She twirled her finger around in the air. The Joker giggled at her.

Nancy laughed a little too, "He gets yelled at and I see eight people shot! Does that sound fair to you?"

"Eight?" Robert interjected.

"Yeah," Nancy sighed, "Cody, that one chick, Jeremy, and the five guys with the guns. When the cops showed up they took whatever they were holding and put it to their chin. Pulled the trigger."

"Dammit Nancy," Robert sighed, "You need to talk to someone."

"I'm fine Rob," Nancy smiled at the floor.

Robert sighed and shook his tired head. Nancy was strong, but after a while even the strong have a moment of impending weakness. She needed help now or she was gonna end up like the guy in the cage: deranged and angry, with a sick sense of humor. At best she'd end up at Arkham in the "less crazy" section. Robert wasn't going to have it.

"So he says he saw God?" the Joker asked with another giggle.

"Yeah," Nancy said, "he said, "does seeing God make me like a demi-God?" And I said "no Eric, if you saw God, you'd be dead!" … he didn't listen though, the kid's got issues I guess." Nancy shrugged.

The Joker had been holding back little fits of laughter the entire time and now sat with his face in his hands, knuckles to his lips. For the rest of the day, Nancy sat in her little wooden chair and talked to the Joker about... stuff. Rock and roll, the 60's, the 90's, how stupid horror movies nowadays aren't actually horror movies at all. Just sort of a broad spectrum of things, with Robert staring at her as if she were crazy all the while.

It was nice. Nancy needed it.


	21. Financial Situation

**Well, since that last chapter was pretty much just a filler to help the story along a bit, I thought I'd add a little more zest to this one. So here you go, oh! And one more thing:**

**Disclaimer: (Just for you) I still don't own the Dark Knight, I'm working on it though.**

/|\

Nancy spent the rest of the week mourning with the rest of her peers. She'd leave school after listening to Eric rant about how he was somehow connected to God and drive to the station. Eric had been getting weirder and weirder everyday, telling everyone to be his followers and trying to convince her that his judgement was to be taken seriously. Nancy was pretty sure he just wanted attention.

Thursday rolled around much faster then Nancy would have liked and she soon found herself in a black dress. The funeral went okay, very stereotypical: rainy, dark, with a quiet only broken by the silent sobs of co-workers and "friends." Anthony and Carol stood next to Nancy and Robert the whole time, Nancy's hand held tightly in Carol's. Nancy took this time to cry again. Her head hurt from all the tears she had shed in the last few days.

Bruce Wayne was there. Nancy found herself glancing up at him every so often. His butler was there too, Alfred. Nancy had always liked Alfred, he was nice and made very good tea from what she could remember. She couldn't help but want the Joker there with her to make her laugh with his smart ass remarks. She caught herself thinking about him and looked back at Carol who smiled sadly at her. She looked at Anthony and gave him a hug. She would be needing a steady supply of those until she got over everything.

When the ceremony was over, guests and friends left in cars and taxis. Nancy and Robert stood for just a while longer, next to Monica's grave. Bruce Wayne stood too, a ways away, giving them room. When Robert noticed him he nodded and patted Nancy on the shoulder. She blinked at the grass and said nothing as the soft swish of Robert's feet against the grass faded away.

"Mr. Wayne," Robert said extending a hand.

Bruce Wayne took in and shook it, "Mr. Webber, I can't tell you how sorry I am."

"Neither can I," Robert sighed rubbing the back of his neck. He looked back and Nancy and frowned a sad frown.

"Listen Mr. Webber-" Bruce started.

"Please," Robert said, "Call me Robert."

"Alright then Robert," Bruce said with a smile, "I'd like to talk to you about Nancy's current... financial situation."

"What do you mean?" Robert asked shoving his hands in his pockets.

"How about we discuss it at your office?" Bruce offered.

"Alright," Robert said with a nod, anything for Nancy.

He walked back over to the quiet figure and hugged her around the shoulder. She looked up at him with a look that said, "Why?" Robert shook his head and lead her back to his car. He looked back at Bruce Wayne as he got in his slick black car and nodded at him. Bruce nodded back.

The drive back to the station was quiet and reserved. Nancy just stared at her review mirror and didn't say anything. She was watching Bruce Wayne.

When they got to the station Robert, Bruce and Alfred made their way into Robert's office and shut the door. But not until Bruce Wayne got a good long look at the Joker.

"Are you sure she should be out there with him?" he asked Robert.

"I'm out here everyday," Nancy answered for him. "The worst he's done so far is insult me."

"She's actually meaner to me then I am to her," the Joker grinned. "She tried to beat my head against the bars of the cage one time."

Bruce Wayne looked at Nancy in shock and laughed a little. After the door had closed behind him Nancy took her seat in the wooden chair in front of the Joker's cage. She cradled her face in her hands and shook her head. Her shoulders rose and fell as she let out a sigh and sat up, elbow to her knee and chin her upturned hand.

"So how'd it go?" the Joker asked, copying her position.

"Well considering the fact that it was my mother's funeral," Nancy said giving him a flat look. "It went okay."

"Thats a pretty slinky dress for a funeral," the Joker grinned. He leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest, his eyes roaming over her. "Not that I'm complaining."

She glared at him and sat up, crossing her arms the way he did, "I don't like dresses, my mother insisted I have one so I just... picked one out at random. She said you could never go wrong with a little black dress so thats what I got. Guess she was wrong."

"Didja know your lower lip pouts a little when yer angry?" he asked cocking his head to one side.

Nancy chuckled an aggravated chuckle and leaned back a bit more, rubbing her eyes, "Someone kill me." she sighed quietly.

Not two minutes later did Robert, Bruce and Alfred troop out of Robert's office into the main office. Robert looked a little confused, but happy. He took Bruce Wayne's hand and shook it roughly, thanking him over and over again for whatever he had done before walking him out to his car. He stumbled back into the office and leaned against the doorframe. Nancy looked back at him and stood up.

"S'matter Rob?" she asked.

"Bruce Wayne's gonna pay for the house..." he breathed.

"What?" Nancy asked taking another step forward.

"Bruce Wayne's gonna pay for the house," Robert repeated clearly.

"Which house?"

"Your house!"

"Why? Does he do this for all his employees?"

"Not for Monica. Not your mom. For you!"

"Again- Why?"

"'Cause he's a friggen billionaire and he can do whatever the hell he wants!"

Nancy paused, "Well... damn. Okay." she shrugged.

"He's going to get it set up now to where all your bills go to him! He's gonna pay for the damages, the clean up the... everything!" Robert shouted nearly jumping in place.

Nancy sat back down in her chair and ran her hand through her hair. She sighed again and looked up at the Joker, then back at Robert.

"Am I really that important?" she asked.

"Apparently," the Joker answered.

Robert glared at him for a moment then looked back at Nancy, "Of course you are..."

Nancy shook her head again, "Carol and Anthony are gonna freak."

"What about Jesus boy?" the Joker laughed.

"Don't think he'll care," Nancy laughed back, "All he cares about right now is having disciples!" she threw her hands in the air.

"Now there's a kid that needs help," Robert said rubbing his forehead with a grin.

"Psh," Nancy sounded, "Fer sure."

"Totally?" the Joker cackled.

"Totally," Nancy said back. She laughed into her hands and looked back at him between her fingers, "Don't ever let me do that again."

The rest of the day went fine. Nancy talked to the Joker until about nine that night about movies before she drove back to the apartment with Robert.

The next day however, wasn't as calmly relieving.

[/|\]

**Cliffhanger for you! :D Have fun figuring out what happens! **


	22. Scarred

**Okay, sorry it took so long. Sadly, school and swimming are just a bit more important than writing fan-fiction.**

**Readers: GASP!**

**Littlestar: I know, I know. Shocking. But anyway, here you are. **

/|\

After Thursday's depressing hold loosened from around Nancy's consciousness, she was free to wander the campus of her mind without being strangled with guilt and pain. Along with her mental campus, was the material campus of her high school which she was forced to attend the very next day. Nancy didn't mind though, it helped her loosen up a bit and smile.

Friday morning went as per usual: Ride to school, catch a coffee at Starbucks on the way, sit with Carol in her car for about fifteen minutes listening to Frank Sinatra and Nirvana until the light tap tap of Anthony's knuckles against the glass woke them from their subconscious slumber, listen to Eric preach for another fifteen minutes, and finally head off to English.

As complex as it seemed, it was Nancy's favorite part of the day. It was the time she got to spend with Carol without Eric's ranting and Anthony's raving about Eric's ranting. The poor lad had been acting stranger with every passing day, which led the entire group to worry about his metal state. They had tried time and time again to secretly set up meetings with the school councilor for help, but he never showed up. Nancy only assumed he had "disciples" on the inside.

Along with Eric's ranting and Anthony's raving, was the ever-present feeling of guilt that hung over the group as they trudged from class to class feeling each others pain. Nancy's being the most pronounced. The entire thing seemed off kilter in Nancy's mind as she pulled into the school parking lot. Not that she could do much about it anyway, to many things were going on right now to worry about herself.

The car stopped with a small sigh and a quick, low rumble as Nancy pulled her keys from the ignition. She sat for a moment in silence, waiting for the small tap on her window to remind her of Carol's presence. When it did not come, Nancy only assumed she was running late and finished her coffee. She grabbed her things from the back seat and hefted herself from the car. She tossed the empty cardboard cup in a trash bin as she made her way to the english/ history/ electives building and nearly tripped over herself trying to get away from the now angered bees in the bin.

As she made her way up the stairs she ran into her english teacher and they had a quick chat about the school boards decision to hold group therapy sessions for students involved in the shooting. She thought it was the single most intelligent thing the administration had thought of. After that, Nancy dropped her things off in her first hour class and started towards the cafeteria for breakfast. She looked at her phone as she made her way down the stairs: **8:00AM**, it said. Nancy sighed and put it away before one of the security guards confiscated it. God forbid checking the time was made a bit simpler by technology.

When she reached the ground floor she couldn't help but glance out the window, down below at the slowly expanding groups of students. They all seemed so at ease with each other. Each other's company brought them all a small sense of equal contentment. Nancy smiled at them and continued on her way down the hall. On the way, she ran into one of the foreign exchange students. Heath was his name. It made Nancy laugh every time she said it.

"Morning Heath," she giggled.

"I am not an Australian movie star," he laughed back. "Stop pretending I am."

"Hey, I'm not as bad as some," Nancy commented.

"True," he sighed back, rubbing his neck. "Just glad m' last names not "Ledger."

"That," Nancy said. "Would be hilarious. Terrible! But hilarious."

"Ugh," Heath groaned. "I don't think I'd be able to stand it. Oh well, I only assume you were on your way to get something to eat?"

"Yes," Nancy replied with a coy grin.

"Well, on your way then," he motioned for her to pass.

"Have a lovely day Mr. Ledger," Nancy laughed.

"Do not," Heath said pointing at her. "call me that."

"Too late," Nancy laughed again. "I'm gonna call you that from now on." He shook his head at her and laughed light-heartedly.

They said their goodbyes and Nancy continued on her way down to the cafeteria.

The next ten minutes, when she thought back on it, seemed very surreal.

Nancy couldn't help but think that her entire conversation was being accompanied by sightly muffled noises coming from the girls bathroom. So she stood for a moment, not breathing, not moving. Only listening.

She heard a shriek rip through the quiet halls. A high, glass shattering shriek that chilled Nancy to her bones. She moved very quickly, then. Across the hall, through the door and halfway across the linoleum floor before coming to a dead stop in the middle of the room. Nancy suddenly found herself unable to breath, reminding her subconscious of the time she was pinned to the bars of the Joker's cage. She couldn't breath, she couldn't speak, she couldn't move.

On the opposite wall was Carol, pinned to the cold tile by Eric, who's hands had found there way to Carol's belt. Nancy's lips moved dumbly as her mind tried to make her tongue form words and sentences. All that came out was the dead air of disbelief.

Finally, she managed, "E-Eric."

Eric stared back at her, the sick smile on his face making Nancy's spine hurt.

"N-Nancy," he mocked. He didn't let go of Carol.

"W-what're you doing?" Nancy choked.

"Nancy!" Carol sobbed. "Nancy! Help me!"

Carol's face was a warped, broken mask of pain, confusion and fear. Bare, unadulterated fear.

"Eric, what the hell are you doing? What the fuck has been up with you lately?" Nancy shouted.

Eric snorted and moved his hands up to the collar of Carol's shirt, "I was so sick of your guys' shit. Always treating me like I was a stupid freshman-"

"Eric, thats the stupidest shit I've ever-" she paused and waved her hands around, trying to come up with more words. She finally spat out one of the least convincing excuses of persuasion anyone could fathom:"You don't have to do this!" she shouted, mentally kicking herself for not coming up with something deeper and understandable.

Eric pondered a moment and smiled, "You're right. I don't!" he laughed, "but I'm gonna anyway..."

He torn Carol's shirt open and grinned at the flushed skin beneath. Nancy grit her teeth and strode forward. Eric, apparently, was one step ahead. He turned to her just as she neared them and backhanded her across the face. Nancy touched her cheek and looked at Eric with a quick smile before punching him in the throat.

He fell to the floor gasping for breath. Carol threw herself at Nancy before being thrown against another wall as Eric charged back at Nancy. He balled up his fist and threw it at her. Nancy fell backward to dodge it. When the pads of her hands hit the floor, she kicked back up at him. Her foot caught the side of his knee and he crumpled to the floor. Nancy looked back up Carol as she got to her feet.

"Carol!" she shouted at the dazed girl, "Go! Get the guards! Now!"

Carol nodded hurriedly, gripped the front of her shirt together, and sprinted out of the room. Nancy looked back at Eric just as his fist caught the side of her head. She stumbled around for a moment groping at stall doors and tiled walls. When her vision cleared she found her wrists pinned to the cold ceramic of one of the sinks. She looked up to see Eric's ravenous eyes staring down at her. She tried to move her arms stupidly before kicking him in the groin. He grabbed himself and fell to his knees with a high gasp. Nancy stumbled forward and grabbed the stall wall.

Eric found his footing and dug through his pockets, mumbling to himself.

"Oh-h-h-h Nancy," he sighed, "You've got to learn to keep you fuckin' nose outta other peoples fuckin' business."

"What's that suppose to mean?" Nancy asked stepping toward the door.

He pulled whatever he was digging for out of his pocket and grinned.

"Switch-bla-a-ade!" he sang.

He clicked the thing open and grinned wider. Nancy dove for the door only to be yanked back into the room by her hair.

"Son of a bitch!" she growled back at him.

He threw her to the floor and straddled her hips with his knees. She looked at herself, then back up at him. Nancy swiped at him with her fists, only managing glancing blows to his arms when he held them up to protect himself. Finally, he reached down with one hand and clamped her wrists together above her head. She stared fearfully at him.

"I really, really didn't want to do this Nancy, but considering the fact that your being a nosey bitch..." he waved his hand from side to side.

She yanked her left hand free of his grasp just in time to have it sliced open by the glint of metallic death in Eric's hands. Nancy shrieked and shifted her body weight. Now she was on top, Eric's knife still buried deep in her shoulder. Her moving about only made the knife shift downward toward her collarbone. She let out another shriek when he withdrew it. Eric just grinned sickly at her.

Nancy snarled at him and tried to wrench the knife from his hands. He threw her forward and straddled her again. Nancy felt dizzy. He stabbed at the hip bone right above his knee and drew the blade down. Nancy woke from her dizzy daze. With another good shove she sent Eric skidding across the floor. She staggered to her feet and gripped at her shoulder, she couldn't move her arm.

She strode forward, a giant sneer slithering across her face. Eric attempted to grip the wall for support as he found his feet again. Nancy kicked him in the face with the heel of her Converse and crumpled to the floor when searing, burning pain spread through her entire right leg. Eric grabbed at his nose and dropped the knife. Nancy watched it clatter to the floor with a grin.

She reached for it and wrapped her blood soaked fingers around the hilt. She licked her lips and scooted closer to Eric whose eyes were now filled with fear and confusion. He had lost.

Nancy grabbed the hair on the back of his neck and brought him forward. He looked him in the eye and lifted the knife to the corner of his mouth.

"S'matter Eric?" Nancy cooed.

"Don't," Eric whispered.

"Don't what?" she asked.

"Please... don't..." Eric whimpered.

"To late." Nancy seethed.

Nancy flicked her wrist and drug the knife across the skin of Eric's cheek up to his ear. Eric screeched and writhed around in Nancy's arms.

Just then came the sound of foot steps thundering down the hall...

/|\

"... -ncy."

".... -er alone. She's res-..."

"...-arol, she oka-...?"

...silence. Knocking. Footsteps, quiet and broken.

"...-Rob."

"Hey Ca-..."

"Not supposed t-... How'd it g-..."

"Fine. She'll be fine."

"...Good."

"...-ere's the doc-...?"

Unsure silence, the question answered by more knocking and footsteps.

"...-Webber."

"...-ning Doct-... -how is sh-?"

"...-verything went fine... -seen worse."

"Don't cry Carol. Nancy's fine. She'll be fine."

Sound begins to clear and focus... Voices made less thick with fading anesthetic...

"She lost a lot of blood, but she'll be fine within a few days." the doctor's cool voice said.

"Now, now Carol, hear that? She's fine, she'll be just fine," Anthony's voice cooed.

"My fault.... all my fault," Carol's voice sobbed.

"No it's not," Anthony said sternly, "It was Eric's and you know it. And Nancy took care of him..."

"Where is that shmuck?" Robert's voice growled.

"Mr. Walker is in room 202, and I do hope you reconsider whatever your thinking. He's already in enough trouble as it is," the doctors voice insisted.

Voices fade with exhaustion...

"...-just a stern talking too..." Robert's voice retorted.

"...-go now. She needs res-"

"... -ure doc. C'mon Carol, Anth-"

"Don't cry Carol. Don't cry."

/|\

Robert strode back into the police station in a sour mood. Oh yes, he had given the little punk who had tried to chop up his Nancy a talk, but he didn't feel any better. The Joker wasn't doing anything to help either.

"Where's Nancy?" he demanded, cheek in hand.

"Wouldn't you like to know," Robert growled.

The Joker gave him a confused look then answered, "Well, yeah. S'why I asked."

Robert glared at him for a moment and sighed, to tired to argue with him.

"Hospital, she got a fight," he grumbled.

"Well hot damn, that had to have been some fight," the Joker said sitting up on his bench and crossing his arms.

"Other kid had a knife," Robert mumbled. He trudged into the lounge for a chair and some coffee.

"What's she look like?" the Joker asked.

"Nancy? Been better."

"No, the other chick."

"Not a chick, a guy. Whipped the shit out of 'im. He's a mess." Robert smiled a little.

"Are you serious?" the Joker exclaimed excitedly.

"Yep, looks like you right about now," Robert said giving the Joker a side glance.

"Wearin' a purple suit?" the Joker asked.

Robert gave him a flat look and continued, "No. she took the knife on him. Took it to his face. Kicked 'im in the head, punched 'im in the throat, all that jazz. She took some too though."

"Well damn, he should be in a coma by now," the Joker giggled, "What'd he do?"

"Took the knife on her," Robert said flatly.

The Joker licked his lips and blinked at Robert before opening his mouth to say something, and closing it again. Robert swirled his coffee around a bit and continued.

"Her friend Carol was in tears, sobbing about how it was all her fault," he hummed, "Couldn't exactly get the whole story without Nancy. She's fine though, just sleeping."

The Joker lightened up a bit, "Now, now Robbie," he said. "You're not doin' that whole "in denial about someone being dead" thing, are ya?"

Robert snorted and grinned, "Nah, they put her under heavy anesthetics to keep her asleep for a while. After that it'll just be ibuprofin and time. She'll be fine."

Jim walked in then, grabbing a chair from the lounge before taking a seat next to Robert, closer to the Joker's cage. He chuckled a little at the thought of the last time he had asked Robert the question he was about to ask now

"How is she?" he asked with a smile.

"Fine," Robert said, "She'll be fine."

[/|\]

Alright, I can't apologize enough for how long it took to get this chapter out. I'm kind of grounded again. Apparently I'm great at writing!... but nothing else, especially biology. Bleh!

Anyway, once again I apologize... hope you kind of liked it.


	23. Swept Away

Alrighty then, since I'm at my dad's I might as well get some writing done. So here you go! Chapter 23...

/|\

"... -cy?"

"...-ancy-y-y..."

"Nancy...?"

Carol leaned over the bars of Nancy's bed and continued to whisper.

"Nancy? You alive?"

Of course she was alive. The monitors next to her bed said so; dinging and beeping away to Nancy's life-and-death tune. Carol watched Nancy's eyes flutter open.

"Hm?" she managed.

Carol smiled and sighed, "Oh Nancy... how do you feel?"

"Dandy," Nancy hummed, "What'd they give me? For the pain?"

"Morphine I think," Carol said, her smile playing in her voice.

"How much?"

"Dunno," Carol shrugged, "Why?"

"Lightheaded, drowsy, a little headache," Nancy listed, "Think they gave me to much."

"You're high," Carol stated.

"Am I?"

"Very."

"How can you tell?" Nancy crossed her arms.

"I'm over here," Carol stated. Nancy looked at her.

"Oh..." Nancy said dumbly, then she laughed.

"What?"

"This just reminds me of the time we-me and Anthony- went to swim practice during Thanksgiving break while they were painting those trophy cases..."

"He told me about that! You guys had to leave because the fumes were so strong and everyone drove home high as kites!" Carol laughed.

"It was hilarious!" Nancy laughed back, "Everyone had headaches for, like, a month after that!"

The girls laughed happily for a while until a nurse walked in with a clipboard and pen.

"Excuse me miss, but visiting hours are over," she said politely.

"Alright," Carol sighed, "Bye Nancy, I'll tell Rob your okay."

"Thanks Carol, I'll see you when I get out of here," Nancy smiled, "If I get out of here."

Carol waved goodbye and left the room, making her way back to her car three flights of stairs and across the parking lot away. She clicked the button on the elevator and hummed to herself as she made her way down to the ground floor. Before she left, she seized the advantage of running her fingers over every button, from the ground floor to the third, and making them glow before walking down the small set of stairs to her car, giggling to herself.

The drive across town to the station was nice. She played ACDC the whole way and sang along to every song she knew. If Nancy were there she could sing every one. From Back in Black, which Nancy said could be Batman's theme song if he took a break then came back to save the day, to Hells Bells, Nancy knew them all. Back and forth, front-ways and side-ways, all of them.

When Carol pulled up into the parking lot she sat for a moment pondering on whether or not she should go inside or just call Robert. She was scared to go inside. The Joker was in there. Finally, she took a deep breath and got out of her car, locking it behind her. She walked up the small entry stairs and through the main doors. She stopped and blinked at the Joker when he looked up for a moment, then went back to twiddling his thumbs. Carol never really thought anyone actually twiddled their thumbs. Apparently they did.

"Carol!" came Robert's voice.

Carol jumped a little, then turned to him, "Hi Rob." she sighed.

"How's my favorite quirky brunette?" Robert asked ruffling her hair a bit.

Carol blushed and coughed, "Dandy. Fine. You?"

"Great!" he said. "How's Nancy?"

Carol sighed and readjusted her hair a bit, happy to get off the subject of her quirkiness. The Joker had stopped fidgeting, she noticed.

"Fine," she sighed, "High as a kite on morphine, but fine. Pretty happy actually."

"Thats good," Robert sighed, "She should be out of there soon right?"

"Thats what I'm guessing."

"Good... Good. Anyway, you should probably be getting home."

"Actually I have a date with Anthony in about half an hour, gonna go see the new James Bond flick."

"Nancy saw that I think, said it was great."

"I just think Daniel Craig's hot..." Carol shrugged.

There was a long pause.

"...Awkward silence..." the Joker giggled.

Carol paused, "I'm gonna go."

"You do that Carol," Robert said quickly.

Carol shuffled her feet awkwardly before turning on her heel and striding out the door with what was left of her dignity.

/|\

Robert smiled as he made his way back to the station, Nancy in the passenger's seat. She gazed out the window tiredly, the fun morphine high had worn off the day before, it was Tuesday now. Robert glanced at her again, she was a wreck: her left arm was in a sling, her shoulder covered in stitches, her right hip, from what he could see, what wrapped in gauze like her shoulder and covered in stitches, her cheek was cut, her wrists were bruised, and a cane lay across her lap. She couldn't really walk without it until her hip healed more. The doctor said it was temporary and she would be able to walk without assistance in a few weeks. Nancy had liked her doctor, she said he looked like House from the TV show she watched.

They pulled up into the station and parked, neither of them moved.

"You okay?" Robert asked.

"Me? Yeah, tired. But okay."

"Okay, c'mon."

The car doors slammed shut. Nancy leaned against her cane and sighed.

"It's cooler when House does it."

"Everything's cooler on TV hon'."

Nancy chuckled a little and followed Robert up the stairs. He opened the main doors for her and shut them behind her.

"You look like hell!" the Joker laughed as soon as Nancy walked in.

"Tell me about it..." Nancy sighed.

"Tired?"

"Exhausted."

"Sleeping's pretty rough when your covered in stitches. Where'd he getcha?"

Robert sighed and went back to his office for some water, and Nancy limped forward to sit in her chair. She fiddled with her cane between her knees for a second, then looked back up at the Joker.

"Well," she sighed, "first, he punched me in the face. Or the head- can't really remember." She shrugged.

"That sucks," the Joker said plainly.

"Psh, yeah," Nancy smiled, "I punched him in the throat, he let go of Carol and I sent her off to get the guards-"

"Carol?" the Joker inquired.

"Friend of mine. She should have come in to tell Rob about me."

"Oh yeah! The Daniel Craig chick!"

"She loves him..." Nancy shook her head.

"Don't you?"

"Meh. He's okay. He has gorgeous eyes. I'll give him that."

"Ah. On with the story." he flicked his wrist at her.

"Of course, do forgive." she held up her good hand in surrender, "So, Carol ran off and Eric got pissed and punched me in the face-"

"Or head."

Nancy smiled, "...Or head... and I stumbled around like a drunken idiot for a a minute, groping at thin air, until he pinned me to the sink..."

Nancy looked at the Joker, gaging his reaction. He was hunched forward a bit, his arms resting against his knees. He didn't seem to happy about her getting pinned to a sink by anyone besides himself.

"So I kicked him in the nuts," she shrugged. The Joker looked a bit happier, she couldn't help but laugh a bit.

"So I trip over and grabbed a stall and he gets up and starts diggin' in his pockets. I look over at 'im and he's mumbling to himself like a crazy person-"

"We don't all mumble, you know," the Joker interrupted, sounding insulted.

"My apologies," Nancy said ducking her head a bit, "Can I finish?"

"Yes, proceed."

"Asshole," Nancy sighed to herself, "So anyway, he pulls out a switch-blade and so I'm like, "Fuck, gonna die." So I oh-so casually make my way toward the door only to be rudely yanked away by my hair!" she grinned. She leaned back in her chair and the smile faded slightly from her light features.

She popped her lips and finished, "After that there was a lot of straddling and stabbing, ultimately resulting in me losing the ability use my left arm for a month and his face ending up looking a bit like yours."

"Not into the "straddling" thing are we?" the Joker quipped.

"Well, judging from the look on your face when I got pinned to a sink," Nancy quipped back, "I can only assume you'd be none to happy with someone straddling little ole' me." she added a southern Belle accent to the last few words.

"That was adorable! Do it again."

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Fine." he leaned against the bars of his cell grumpily, crossing his arms over his chest.

"God, you pout more then Carol does."

"You pout too, ya' know. You just can't help it."

"And why is that?"

"You have naturally pouty lips sweety. Its cute."

"You do this just to piss me off don't you?"

"Yes."

Nancy paused and shook her head, letting out a sigh.

"Tried sleepin' yet?"

"Nope."

"You should, you need it- I can tell."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah really."

Nancy laughed.

"I'll wake ya' up if you start screamin'" the Joker said gently.

Nancy stopped laughing, "What?"

"Sleep."

"No. I will when I get home _dad_." Nancy quipped again.

"If you say so."

"Speaking of home," Robert's voice hummed, "Bruce Wayne just called. The house is all finished if you wanna go there tonight."

Nancy turned to him, "Really?"

"Yep."

Nancy hopped to her feet, instantly regretting it. She stubbled backward and fell against the Joker's cage.

"Damn!" she shouted.

She gripped at the metal bars but couldn't find any. The one thought running through her head being, Really? After all the shit I've through already? Now this? REALLY?

But Nancy didn't hit the floor. She didn't even fall very far. She looked up at the Joker, who appeared to have a very good hold on her wrist. Nancy swallowed nervously and shifted her weight to her other foot.

"Let's not do that," he purred.

"Yeah," she choked.

He let go of her wrist and watched her pace backward. She picked up her cane and limped toward Robert, she glanced over her shoulder at the Joker. He grinned at her.

She took a breath and looked at Robert. He was attempting to glare holes into the Joker's eye sockets. It wasn't working. Nancy patted him on the shoulder and continued to limp out of the room. Robert strode ahead of her, opening the door.

"Hey Nancy?" the Joker said.

"Hm?" she replied.

"You know that saying, "You hate to see her go, but you just love to watch her leave"?"

Nancy opened her mouth and turned to him. She couldn't come up with anything to say for a moment, then she responded with:

"Be glad I'm crippled. Be glad, because if I wasn't... I'd kick your ass."

He stuck his tongue out at her and laughed when her face turned red. He laughed harder when Robert's face turned purple.

Nancy and Robert drove to the Webber residence in silence. Nancy's being more embarrassed then Robert's. His was more of an angry silence. When they finally arrived at the house, Robert handed Nancy the keys and helped her to the door. Nancy looked at the empty driveway and wondered when she would get her car back. Not that she would be able to use it any time soon, but it would be nice to at least look at it.

"Well," Robert said, "Here we are."

"Yep," Nancy sighed.

"You okay?"

"Wouldja stop asking me that? I'm fine. I promise."

"Alright." Robert held his hands up in surrender.

Nancy slid the key in the lock and opened the door. She limped inside, setting the keys on a little table next to the door. Robert followed her in and stood in the doorway. He looked down at his watch: 8:54. It was later then he thought it would be. He looked back up at Nancy she was leaned against one of the walls staring down at the floor. She yawned.

"Tired?" he asked.

She nodded, "Goin' to bed soon."

"Do it now," Robert insisted. "I was just about to leave."

"'Kay," Nancy said she stood up straight and limped over to him.

"Night," she said. She gave him a hug, he hugged back.

"Night kid," he said.

He walked out the door as Nancy started to wave. He gave a little good-bye honk and drove out of sight down the street. Nancy sighed and shut the door, locking it before heading upstairs. She made her way up to her mothers room. Someone had come in and cleaned the place up.

She limped over and took off her shoes and jacket. She leaned her cane against the wall and sat on the edge of the bed before easing herself further onto it. She took off her sling and set it on the nightstand. She reached for the sheets and pulled them up around her neck. She tossed around in the sheets for a while, trying to find a comfortable position. When one was found she relaxed and let her eyes slide shut.

Nancy didn't shift after that. She didn't shiver, didn't quiver, didn't scream. Nancy went to sleep and stayed that way for quite a while.

/|\

Nancy sat in Phycology class the next day, still tired and slightly hungry. Dr. Johnson walked in a moment later and stopped in his tracks, his cane clutched in his hand. He cocked his head to one side at Nancy before standing up straight again.

"Webber?" he stated.

"Sir?" she responded.

"What the hell happened to you?"

"Shanked, sir."

Dr. Johnson nodded and limped over to his desk.

"Oh my God! You guys are twinkies now!" Anthony declared.

Nancy and her teacher looked at Anthony in confusion and slight amusement.

"Ya' know... with the canes... yeah." he slumped back in his chair

"Shut up Harrison," Dr. Johnson said shaking his head.

/|\

"I love you Anthony Harrison."

"I love you Carol Pike."

"Oh, please God stop it, I'm gonna throw up."

It was lunch now, and Nancy had survived half the day without popping any stitches. The other half would be just as hard. Not that the first part hadn't been tough enough: she got up late, called Anthony to come and pick her up, missed her coffee and breakfast, had to get and elevator key so she wouldn't have to limp up the stairs, and try to get to class on time without hurting herself. The time after that wasn't that difficult, all she had to worry about was getting to class on time without hurting herself, which, when she thought about it, wasn't all that hard. What she had to focus on now was not throwing up all over Carol and Anthony who found it very amusing to swoon over each other at lunch.

"Don't be a sissy Nancy," Carol protested.

"Yeah," Anthony added.

"Shut up," Nancy suggested.

Carol and Anthony continued to hold hands and stare dreamily into each others eyes.

"I'm gonna go get more milk or something," Nancy grumbled, getting up from the table.

"Mhmm," the other two hummed in unison.

"Gonna vomit," Nancy mumbled, "Can't wait to get home..."

/|\

Anthony drove Nancy to the station after school. Although Nancy's current residence was on much better side of town Robert still insisted on her coming back to the station after school until he was comfortable with the whole situation.

"Still feel like throwing up?" Anthony asked.

"The nausea is slowly fading," Nancy joked.

"That's good," he said, turning up the radio.

_Viva la Vida_ by Coldplay had finally made its way on the radio, and thus through Anthony's car speakers.

"Fabulous!" Anthony declared, "I love this song!"

"You'd make a wonderful gay guy, Anthony." Nancy laughed.

"You think so?" he said in the gayest voice.

"I know so, sweety," she said in a more convincing tone.

One of P!nks songs came on next.

They pulled up into the station parking lot and sat in the car a moment longer until the song stopped.

"'Kay Nancy," Anthony said, "As much as I love you, I have a date in half an hour. Me and Carol are gonna go see Twilight."

"Don't," Nancy smirked.

"Why?"

"There's only one kiss scene."

"Dammit! Why?"

Nancy shrugged, "Dunno. And they didn't even build the tension right!"

Anthony gave a mock horrified look before leaning back in his seat, "That sucks."

"Yep," Nancy said, "And as much as I love you I have a very nervous uncle waiting just inside, and I must go."

"If you must, I'll see you tomorrow dear," Anthony sighed. He gave her a one armed hug and held out her cane for her, "I'll bring your things to the house for you."

"Thank you, dear," Nancy smiled.

"Your welcome, dear," Anthony smiled back.

Nancy limped up the stairs and turned back to wave at Anthony as he drove away. She turned back to the front door and shoved it open, made her way down the hall and opened the main door. She stopped and the breath caught in her throat.

The Joker's cage was empty, the door hanging open. Robert was lying on the floor, cuffed to one of the metal bars, and Jim sat slouched forward in the wooden chair in front of the empty cell, cuffed to it as well. Without thinking, Nancy strode forward toward Robert. She knelt next to and shook his shoulder.

"Rob!" she shouted, "Oh God no- Rob!"

She stopped shouting and listened. The main door behind her began to creak. After what seemed like an eternity, the door clicked shut. Nancy slowly turned her head to see behind her.

"Shit," she hissed.

"S'matter Nancy?" the Joker asked happily, "Y-you seem a bit concerned."

"Shit," Nancy hissed again

The Joker giggled and stepped from the shadows.

"You shoulda' seen it Nancy, Robbie really put up a fight," he laughed. "It was great! Then Jimmy came in with the gun...it was great. That's really the only way to describe it." He shrugged.

Nancy staggered to her feet and leaned against her cane, "Dammit."

"Damn what, sweetheart?"

"Everything!" she shouted, "And don't call me sweetheart."

She turned to him and gasped when she realized how close he was to her.

"Shit!"

She nearly tripped over Robert to get away. The Joker reached after her and nearly tripped over Robert, too.

"Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit!" Nancy howled.

She made her way into Rob's office and picked the gun up off the desk. She pointed it at the Joker when he appeared in the doorway. He paused and looked her.

"Do you even know how to use that?" he asked.

"...No," Nancy said desperately, looking for the clip. "And its not even loaded!"

She resorted to throwing it at him and pushed passed him through the door. He grabbed her by the arm and pushed her up against the wall.

"Shit I'm gonna get raped then I'm gonna die!" she said.

"No, your not, now stop moving," the Joker growled at her.

She stopped and whimpered a bit. She couldn't help being scared out of her mind. He looked at her for a moment, up and down, side to side.

"You're kinda cute when you're _petrified_ Nancy dear," he giggled, his eyes landed on hers. Nancy choked.

"Please don't kill me, and if you do please make it quick..." She closed her eyes.

"I'm not gonna kill ya' Nancy," the Joker rolled his eyes at her.

"Hm? What now?" she asked, one eye opening a tad.

"Just kidnappin' ya," he yanked her from the wall and drug her to the door.

"Oh hell," Nancy stuttered.

The Joker drug Nancy down into the parking lot and picked out a random car, broke the window and unlocked the rest of the doors. He shoved Nancy in the backseat and hot-wired the car to life. The engine rumbled and the radio started playing one of Rick Astley's less popular songs. The Joker turned it off and ripped out of the lot, tearing down the street at a speed that pushed Nancy back in her seat.

"Gonna die," she stammered, "Where are you taking me?"

"Where ever I want," he answered curtly.

[/|\]

**Okay, had to rush the end there, sorry about that. Hope you liked it, yadda yadda yadda. Love you guys. **

**Bye!**


	24. Mike, You Idiot

**Friends! Romans! Countrymen! Lend me your ears! For I give you new chapters… kind of. I know its been a while, but I do hope you'll forgive a fool. Enjoy. **

/|\

"So you dropped her off and everything right?" Carol asked.

"Yeah, she's fine," Anthony replied.

"We probably should have asked her if she wanted to come with us, she loves that book," Carol pouted.

"Speaking of," Anthony remembered. "Nancy said she saw it already. She said it was terrible."

"What?" Carol was quite shocked.

"Yeah, she said there was only one kiss scene," Anthony replied in a frustrated tone. "I mean, I never really read the books, but you'd think they would put more romance in a movie _based_ off a romance novel."

"That sucks," Carol murmured.

"Thats what I said," Anthony responded.

Carol looked out of her car window and pulled over to let several screaming police cars drive by. Screaming police cars, Carol had learned, were never a good thing.

"That can't be good," she said watching them turn a corner and out of sight.

"What?"

"Cops. Lots of 'em."

"Think its the Joker?" Anthony laughed.

"Don't joke about that stuff!" Carol interjected. "You never know if he could get out or not. He's done it, like, three times now!"

"Alright, alright. I was only kidding," Anthony reassured. "You wanna call Robert? To make yourself feel better?"

"Shut up-" Carol nearly spouted, instead she looked down at her phone when it let out a beep to tell her she was getting another call; **Rob**, it said. She put the phone back to her ear and glanced at her mirrors to check the cars behind her. Carol was very persistent with those typed of things.

"Anthony, I gotta let you go," she said, not being able to help being a bit nervous, "Rob's on the other line."

"Crap, answer it, it can't be good," Anthony hissed. "Call me back, okay?"

"Yeah," Carol switched over to Robert's line and put the phone back to her ear. "Rob?"

"Carol," Robert said urgently. He sounded sick. "Have you talked to Nancy at all in the past few minutes?"

"No. Why? What's the matter?" Carol asked, suddenly very concerned.

"Has Anthony? Anyone else you can think of?" Robert insisted.

"No. Only after school, and I don't think Nancy's talked to anyone else," Carol's breathing began to speed up, "Robert, what's going on?"

"The Joker got out of his cage," Robert said flatly.

Carol nearly dropped her phone. She remained silent for a few moments. Anthony had dropped Nancy off at the station, where the Joker was being held, which meant that he could have waited for Nancy to show up after school. Carol felt sick.

"Carol?" Robert's voice asked, "You still there?"

"I'll call everyone," Carol blurted, "I'll get Anthony to call everyone he knows and we'll check everywhere. Nancy knows everyone, once it gets around that she's missing-"

"Carol," Robert said in a firmer tone, "listen to me: call Anthony, get him to call his friends and make sure they haven't seen Nancy. You need to call everyone he doesn't know and tell them to call people. Get everyone to call everyone, and when you're done with that, call me back, okay? The police are going to check around town, okay? Carol? Listen, do what I just told you. Okay?"

"O-ok-kay," Carol whimpered.

Carol hung up and dialed Anthony's number again.

"Carol? What's up with Rob?" Anthony asked.

Carol started to cry, "R-R-Rob said that the J-Joker got out of his cage and that- that Nancy wasn't at the station anymore. He told me t-t-to call you and te-tell you call everyone and ask them if they h-h-had talked to N-N-Nancy lately," Carol pulled over on a curb and leaned against her steering wheel, her shoulders heaving in pained sobs.

Anthony remained quiet for a long time before he finally responded, "I should have gone in with her. I shouldn't have let her go in by herself. I knew that bastard was in there." He started to pound his fist against his steering wheel.

"Anthony!" Carol shouted, "Call people! Now!"

"Okay, alright. Carol?" Anthony rubbed his eyes, "I-... I love you."

"I love you, too," Carol wiped the tears from her eyes, "Call."

Anthony and Carol hung up and went through every person on their contact lists, asking them about Nancy. If they had seen her, talked to her, texted her. Anything about Nancy. Anthony even called Eric- which didn't make sense considering he was in prison. The whole process went on for about half an hour before Anthony called Carol back.

"No one," he sighed. His palms were sweaty, he was exhausted from worry, his breathing was ragged, and his heart hurt from all the wrong answers to his questions.

Carol wasn't much better, "Me neither. I have to call Rob and tell him."

"'Kay," Anthony said, "I'm sorry..."

"Me too," Carol rubbed her neck.

She hung up and dialed Rob's number.

"Rob?" she asked when he picked up.

"Yeah. Anything?" he asked expectantly.

Carol tried to say no, but she just couldn't. She was quite sure her silence answered the question quite clearly. She could hear Robert give a low sigh on the other line.

"Rob?" she asked in concern.

"We're not done checking yet," he said, "Maybe she ran. She's strong like that... God- why?"

"Rob. We'll find her. She'll be fine. Like you said, she's strong, and you know it," Carol paused, "She's the strongest person I know."

"Yeah," Robert sighed again, "Listen, Carol, I gotta go. You understand."

"Yes. Go. Fond her. For everyone." Carol managed before slumping back in her seat.

She was tired. She never thought that such a simple task as talking could be so exhausting. She set her phone in a cup holder and rubbed her eyes. She hoped it would ring with Nancy's ringer:_ Dance Tonight_ by Paul McCartney. Nancy had loved that song. Then Carol remembered someone she hadn't called. A friend of hers off in college. Or at least, thats where she though he was...

/|\

"Mike! Imma kick yo' ass foo'."

"Uh huh, I'm getting that "ass-kicking" vibe Bruce."

Bruce gave Mike a good push and attempted to make him lose his concentration. Mike and Bruce were playing a very intense game of Halo 2. Mike was winning.

"Would you two shut up or something?" Victoria asked in a snobbish tone.

"Just as soon as you stop complaining sweet-cheeks," Mike quipped.

Victoria gaped at him from behind her mask before going back to staring at the screen.

"I wouldn't mess with her dude," Amy suggested, "She's kind of evil."

"Psh," Mike swiped the air with his hand, "I know a chick that's like- four inches taller than you that could kick everyones ass... except maybe Bruce, but there is a slight size difference."

Bruce nodded to himself victoriously.

"And just who is this wonder-mus person Mike?" Amy asked.

She sat in the love seat that they had stolen from some poor saps house and fiddled with a wireless transmitter. Next to her sat Victoria, who, for the passed few minutes, had done nothing but complain. Amy's brother Jason sat in the recliner on the other side of the space they had made for a kind of living room area. He seemed moody as he tapped away at his computer. Bruce and Mike sat on the coffee table in front of the television set, banging on the screen every so often when the image would shift. Mike had gotten to his feet to explain things with a bit more vigor.

"She's a friend of mine off in high school," he exclaimed.

"Oh yeah," Victoria grunted, "I'm really scared now."

"You would be if you met her, she's awesome."

"Is she hot?" Bruce asked.

Mike turned to him slowly and said, "Yes. But don't ever tell her that. She. Will. Kill. You."

Bruce shook his head and fiddled with his X-Box controller. He wanted to beat Mike.

"Anyway..." Mike shrugged and sat down again, resuming his game with Bruce.

Everyone sat quietly for a while. Victoria had stopped complaining, Jason had stopped typing long enough to watch the last round of Bruce and Mike's game, and Amy had set her transmitter aside for the time being. Bruce and Mike pounded away at each other until one of them died and the game stats came up. Mike had won by ten points.

"Dammit," Bruce grumbled.

"You know that chick I was just talking about? She can kick my ass," Mike declared proudly.

"Damn," Bruce hummed.

He go up from the table and trudged over to the love seat and sat between Victoria and Amy. They stared at him in annoyance for a moment.

"Get off Bruce," Amy demanded, "There's a whole other couch over there."

She shoved him, but he didn't budge. He was a lot bit bigger than her. Victoria kicked him in the side and he got up with a sigh. Amy and Victoria nodded victoriously at each other before leaning back in their seats.

Mike slumped forward on the table and stared at the stats again. He missed having his ass kicked by Nancy. She was one of his best friends even though she was a whole year younger than him. She had always been nice to everyone: the goths, the emos, jocks, preps, gang bangers, nerds, theater geeks, and computer techies. She had problems though, he could see it in her eyes sometimes. Then, like a giant light bulb went off in his head, he thought of something: he would call Nancy.

Just as he pulled out his cell phone Amy shouted, "Hey! Who said you could call anyone?"

"Chill out," Mike reassured, "Nancy still thinks I'm in college."

He turned on his phone just in time to have it buzz at him that he had missed a call. **Carol** it said. Carol was one of his friends too. He decided to call her back first.

"Carol?" he asked when she picked up.

"Mike! Mike, have you talked to Nancy at all lately? Please say yes," Carol pleaded.

"No, I was going to just now. Why?"

"Rob thinks Nancy's been kidnapped by the Joker."

Mike stopped and processed the information that had just dumped on him like a ton of bricks.

"S'matter?" Amy asked.

"Oh God," Mike held his masked face in his hands.

"Mike? Call Nancy. Call her now." Carol demanded.

"Okay. Oh God," Mike said again.

Mike hung up his phone and found Nancy's number as fast as he could and called it.

"Mike? What the hell's goin' on man?" Bruce asked sitting up from his slouched position.

"Nothing. Everything. Oh God," Mike fluttered.

"What the hell?" Bruce turned to Amy. She shrugged.

"Pick up. Pick up. Pick up. Pick up. Come on Nancy. _Pick up_." Mike pleaded.

/|\

Nancy felt her phone buzz in her pocket. She felt for it for a moment before looking at the caller-ID. **Mike**, it said. There was a picture of Mike in a viking hat on holding a big plastic sword.

"Mike, now is not a good time," she whispered to it.

She glanced out the window and noticed that the car had stopped. She shivered and looked up at the Joker, whose hand was held out for the phone. Nancy felt like a child being punished at school. She handed it to him and pulled her knees to her chest, she felt her stitches pull. The Joker giggled at Mike's picture and looked back at her.

"Halloween," she stated flatly.

He nodded and flipped her phone open, "Hiya, Mikey."

"Oh God," came Mike's response, "B-boss?"

"Mike! How ya been pal?" the Joker laughed.

"Oh God," Mike said again.

"Not yet Mikey, but thanks anyway."

"Where's Nancy?" Mike asked, his voice made a bit more distant with his clown mask.

"Right here. Wanna talk to her?"

"Yes, please."

"Okay then," the Joker handed Nancy her phone.

"Hi Mike," Nancy said.

"Oh God. Nancy? Are you okay?" Mike asked.

Nancy gave her phone a confused look before answering Mike's question, "Oh yeah. I'm great Mike. I'm not in the back of a speeding car being driven by a psycho."

"Were you being sarcastic?"

Nancy sighed and rubbed her eyes. Mike was a good guy, but he sure was an idiot.

"No. I was being completely serious. That's why the Joker answered my phone!"

"Sorry."

"Mike... you're an idiot..."

Nancy glanced up at the review mirror to find the Joker was grinning at her. Her stomach knotted.

"Where are you?" Nancy asked.

"Um, college?" Mike stuttered.

Nancy stopped a moment and wondered, why had Mike answered her question with another question?

"Which college?" she asked.

"Um, you know- that one. With the stuff and... things," Mike mumbled.

Nancy stopped and seethed a moment before calmly handing the Joker her phone.

"S'matter Nancy? Don't wanna talk to Mike no more?" he asked with a grin.

"Take. The damn. Phone," she fumed.

"I think she's angry with you, Mike," the Joker said.

"I think so, too," Mike groaned.

"You know now that I think about it, where'd you guys set up camp?"

"Down by the docks, you'll see us. We're the only warehouse with a big, white van up in front," Mike continue to groan.

"Alrighty then, see you in a bit," the Joker said happily.

Nancy wrapped her arms around her knees and glanced up in time to see the Joker toss her phone out the window. She closed her eyes and pressed them to her knees. The Joker looked at her for a moment. She was so quiet, so solid and defiant against the world without trying. He couldn't help but wonder what was festering in her head. So much chaos in three weeks wasn't good for a little dolls head. Eventually she'd snap and kill everyone in her immediate area. He wondered how much fun that would be.

/|\

Carol's phone rang and she flipped it open without looking to see who it was.

"Mike?" she begged.

"Hey," Mike droned.

"Did you call Nancy? What did she say?" Carol insisted frantically.

"Yes. Not much," Mike continued.

"Well, what happened?" Carol jumped to her feet.

She was sitting as the police station just outside Robert's office. Anthony was in the lounge getting them all some water. Jim was pacing around the holding area, cell phone in hand. He was trying to talk to the new DA. Since Harvey Dent's death, Jim had been having a much harder time negotiating, getting warrants, and even getting sufficient funds for equipment. Other investigators and detectives strode around the office, exchanging files, and discussing the latest catastrophe: Nancy Webber's kidnapping.

"I talked to the Joker," Mike droned again after a moment.

Carol fell back into her seat, her phone barely clutched in her hand.

"I'm sorry Carol," Mike said, "I'm so sorry."

"Did he-? What did you...?" Carol tried to stutter.

"I... I don't know," Mike said. He didn't like lying to Carol.

"Okay," Carol sighed, "Okay... we'll just keep looking. Call me if you get anything."

"Yeah," Mike sighed back, "I'll do that. I'm sorry."

"Me too Mike," Carol whispered, "Me too."

Carol pocketed her phone and held her face in her hands. Anthony came back a moment later with their water.

"Mike?" he asked.

Carol nodded sadly.

"Nothing?"

"No. He talked to the Joker. He picked up Nancy's phone."

"Dammit."

"Told Rob yet?"

"No."

"Told me what?"

Carol and Anthony turned to Robert as he strode tiredly from his office. He had been tearing through town in a cop car, now he was sweaty, tired, and ragged.

"Mike just called," Carol explained, "I told him to call Nancy. He did, but when someone answered... it wasn't Nancy. Mike said it was the Joker."

"Shit," Robert hissed to himself.

"We've called everyone," Anthony said, "Friends, family, families of friends, friends of family... everyone."

"Okay."

"Rob," Jim said.

Robert turned to him.

"The mayor wants to know what's going on. Now," he said, "So does the DA."

Robert sighed and ran his hand through his hair. He paced a moment and finally turned back to Jim.

"Get what we know to him," he said. "Tell him to get a press conference going. Speeches and all."

Jim nodded and went back to talking to the mayor. He had ended his conversation with the DA a while back.

Robert sighed and looked back at Anthony and Carol. Carol was standing up again, Anthony was holding her, she was sobbing again. These passed few weeks had taken a real toll on her, too. Nancy was her best friend. Nancy was everyones friend.

"It's alright Carol," Anthony whispered.

"Its not fair," Carol whimpered, "It's too much."

"I know dear. I know," Anthony coaxed.

He swept the hair from her face and planted a kiss on her lips before pulling her forward again. Her shoulders shook in despair as she continued to sob. Anthony bit his lip and buried his face in her chocolate brown locks. Robert sighed and rubbed his eyes to delay the oncoming tears. Nancy wasn't just his friends, she was his niece. The only family he had left. She was his everything. He set his hands on Anthony and Carol's shoulders, and they looked up at him. Carol threw her arms over his shoulders and sobbed. Her makeup was smeared. Anthony wrapped his arm around Carol and stared up at Robert in desperation.

"Why?" he asked.

"I don't know," Robert sighed.

/|\

Mike slumped down on the couch and sighed. He hated lying to Carol. He knew exactly where Nancy was and where she was going to be. Right about now he just hoped he could convince his boss not to kill her. He knew he'd probably be the one dying in the end, but if Nancy lived it'd probably be worth it. He sighed again and looked at Bruce who was giving him a very confused look.

"That was my friend Carol, she's friends with Nancy, alright? J just kidnapped Nancy, Carol's worried, so I called... and I lied. What was I supposed to do? Say, "Oh by the way Carol, I'm working for the psychopathic murderer who just kidnapped Nancy"?" he asked getting to his feet. He started to pace the room.

"I didn't even say anything," Bruce shrugged.

"Yeah I know," Mike sighed, "This is just... kind of rough for me."

"It cool man, just chill," Bruce said.

"Yeah... sorry," Mike sat down in time to stand up again, "Didja hear that?"

"What?" Victoria asked.

Everyone got their feet, even Jason who hadn't said a word the entire time. Victoria pulled her gun out from under the couch and handed Amy hers. The other three did the same. Bruce tiptoed over to one of the windows and peeked through it.

"Who is it?" Mike asked.

"_What_ is it?" Amy hissed.

"It's a car, and I don't know," Bruce barely said.

Mike slipped forward and stood opposite to Bruce. Amy crouched down on the coffee table and ran a hand along the clip of her AK-47. Jason's shoulders continued to rise and fall with tense breathes as Bruce and Mike exchanged quiet words and Victoria crouched down like Amy on the love seat. Mike gave the window a solid glance as the cars lights dimmed and the engine cut. Bruce's gun gave a good click as he cocked it and stared out the window at an angle. His shoulders finally lowered and he relaxed, making everyone in the room more suspicious. He shook his head and trudged back toward the couch and sat down, everyone continued to stare.

"It's J," he said, "Stop freakin'."

He grabbed one of the controllers and leaned forward, asking Mike for another round. Mike sighed and stepped back towards the couch, taking the controller offered to him. Amy relaxed and stood, walking back toward Victoria on the love seat. Jason settled back onto the recliner and started to tap away on his computer again. Amy shook her head at him.

The door creaked open. Mike stared blankly at the Joker as he walked through and shut the door with his foot.

"Oh my God," he gawked.

"Shut up Mike..." Bruce started, then he realized what Mike had been gawking at, "Boss, I didn't you would be the type to- uh... sweep girls off their feet."

Mike continued to stare at the Joker as he cradled Nancy Webber's unconscious form in his arms. The Joker blinked down at her and shrugged.

"Your little friend sure likes to fight Mikey," he said.

"How did...? Did she...? I- ugh," Mike groaned and gripped at his head.

"Si' down Mike," Bruce said, shoving the blonde down onto the couch.

"Ugh," Mike groaned again, this time in confusion more than frustration.

"Could you guys picked a more- uh- inconspicuous hideout?" the Joker interrupted.

Mike stopped groaning and pointed accusingly at Jason, "Ask super-genius over there. He said the group home downtown was to obvious. I said it was easier but no-o-o-o..." he droned.

The Joker just sighed and shifted his weight a bit. Victoria stared angrily at Nancy, whose head simply lolled to one side dumbly. Mike felt the sudden urge to throw something at her. Amy just shook her head for a moment and ended the awkward silence that had filled the room.

"If we need to move, we can. Nothing's really unpacked yet, not like it was packed well to start with..." she looked at Mike and Bruce over her shoulder, they looked away and tried to look as innocent as possible. "But, oddly enough, I agree with Mike, we need more room, and a warehouse just won't cut it if we're gonna have more goons."

She crossed her arms over her chest and leaned back against the couch. The Joker nodded his head and shifted his weight again. Jason glared at Amy, Amy took the advantage to glare right back. The Joker glanced between the two and grinned. Oh, how he loved family feuds.

"Soooo," the Joker hummed, shifting his weight from one foot to the other, "Besides arguing about whose idea it was to go where and how much of an idiot each you are... what else do you plan on doing?"

The group sat silently for a moment, taking in their scolding like children before Victoria piped up.

"We could move now if you wast J..." she cooed.

"In the middle of the night? Okay, after we do that we can go drink antifreeze," Mike nodded.

"You know what? I think thats a great idea, how 'bout you Amy?" Bruce asked with a chuckle.

"Well I think it's brilliant!" she said.

Victoria shrunk back in her seat and rubbed her knees.

"I think what their tryin' to say, Vicky, is that movin' in the middle of the night in Gotham isn't exactly the brightest of ideas," the Joker grinned.

Victoria made a popping noise with her lips and kneaded her palms. Bruce and Mike held their hands up for high fives, the Joker just shifted his weight again. He looked down at Jason.

"Hey Silent Bob," he said. Jason looked up from his computer, "Ya' mind movin' yer ass so I can set down sleeping beauty here?"

Jason closed his computer and moved over to the couch with Bruce and Mike. The Joker set Nancy down on the recliner and shrugged his shoulders a bit. Victoria continued to glare at her.

"What didja do to 'er?" Mike asked hesitantly.

"Pressure points do wonders when you know where they are," the Joker responded with a laugh.

Mike ground his teeth for a moment as he stared at his friends unconscious figure. He stared at her arm, it was being held in a sling.

"You... you didn't do that to her did you boss?" he asked.

"Nope," he said, looking back at her, "Some crazy kid at school, thought he was Jesus 'er something. Ended up being total BS."

"Eric?"

"Somthin' like that," the Joker shrugged, "I just knew him as Jesus-kid."

Mike shook his head and looked at Bruce, who was looking at Nancy.

"So thats the chick that can kick your ass at Halo?" he asked.

"Yeah, not now though. I think she's a little tired." Mike laughed.

"You guys seen my coat?" the Joker asked. Everyone looked at him a moment and pointed back at a row of boxes against one of the back walls. "Ah."

Mike and Bruce hopped up from the couch and sat on the coffee table. Mike grabbed the X-Box controllers and Bruce set the system up. The Joker glanced back at them and cocked his head to one side; he had never understood what was so appealing about sitting in front of a screen with a controller in your hand. He turned back to the boxes and continued to search for his jacket. He was sick of carrying all of his knives in his front pockets.

Amy looked on as Mike and Bruce started to kill each other. It would be amusing on most occasions, but right about now she was to angry with Jason to care. She looked at Victoria, who was currently preoccupied with watching her employer search for his clothes. She sighed and stared at Jason for a moment in anger before looking at the girl on the recliner. She was pretty: ear-length blonde hair that either needed to be styled or trimmed, cherry lips, pale skin, slender figure. She was pretty well off when it came to looks, but Amy noticed something else, or a lot of somethings: the girls wrists were bruised, her cheek was dark with another bruise, her arm was held in a sling, her left shoulder was covered in gauze, along with her right hip. The poor girl looked like hell now that she thought about it.

Her gaze was torn away when the Joker slid around the love seat and sat on the couch. Jason looked intelligently at him then went back to typing. Amy was not pleased with her brother at the moment. She looked at Bruce and Mike as their characters hacked at each other with energy swords. She looked at Victoria again, she was still staring at the Joker. She sighed again and looked at the Joker himself. He didn't seem to be staring at anything in particular. Then Amy looked for a bit longer. Then Amy realized the Joker wasn't staring at nothing, he was staring at Nancy. Amy blinked and leaned forward a bit, making it look like she was watching the game. She watched the Joker's eyes roam and glide over the girls unconscious body. Amy nodded and looked over to watch Dumb and Dumber, Mike and Bruce, beat the crap out of each other.

Amy knew, and it almost made her laugh when she realized it, that, not only did Victoria have no chance in hell of getting the Joker attention, but that all of the attention that the Joker had put into his evil little schemes would be focused on something else for a while.

/|\

Mike stared grumpily out the vans windshield. After he had beaten Bruce at Halo for the third time, his boss had to come in and ruin it by telling him and Bruce to take the car he had jacked and drive it out somewhere and burn it. Mike had to come along of course to pick up Bruce after the while thing was said and done. Bruce didn't seem to be to happy about it either. He had to drive the car out of town, light it on fire, make sure the license plate was destroyed, and get back to the warehouse with Mike before the Batman decided to show up and ruin the fun. After they had done that, everyone would have to repack everything so they could move back to the group home in town. Mike had officially gathered enough hate to call it "A Harbored Hate for Jason."

"That guy thinks he's so cool with his computer and his mask and his... smart shit," Mike hissed to himself, he had been doing that a lot lately, "And then there's Victoria. Boy does she need to get laid! Stupid bitch can't keep her eyes off-ah anyone can she? Fuckin' hate 'er." He honked at a Ford when it sped across an intersection in front of him, "Amy isn't so bad. Sure she's quiet, but I would be too if my brother was a total, self-righteous, egotistical prick. She's probably keepin' quiet to keep from killin' that bastard with a machete." Mike laughed a bit at the thought and stopped at a light. His little fit of laughter turned into a full fledged giggle-fit. The car behind him honked and he kept moving.

He looked around as the city lights began to lessen and neon seemed to be the only thing lighting the streets. He saw Bruce pull the jacked car into an alleyway. He stopped and rolled down a window.

"You want me to pull up a bit?" he asked.

"Yeah, just up there to the curb," Bruce nodded.

"'Kay."

Mike pulled the car up to the corner and rolled up the window. He sat waiting for a while until he heard the light tap of Bruce's knuckles against the passenger side window. Mike unlocked the door and let Bruce in. Bruce immediately told him to floor it and, "Get the fuck outta here." The shit, it seemed, was about to hit the fan.

/|\

Mike and Bruce pulled back up the warehouse at about 9:30. Bruce had gotten rid of the license plate, which he had snatched from the car before setting it on fire earlier on, after mutilating it. Nancy still hadn't woken up from her slumber, and Mike had started to worry.

"Okay maybe its just me, but I don't ever remember anyone staying unconscious for that long," he said. "Ever."

"She's fine," the Joker reassured, "Trust me Mikey. I won't hurt your little friend."

Jason mumbled something and went back to typing. Mike huffed and looked at him.

"How long can you fuckin' type man?" he asked. He was quite frustrated for some reason. "What the hell could you be typing?"

"None of your business..." Jason droned.

Mike looked at the Joker, "Porn," he mouthed.

Mike swallowed the laugh that threatened to escape and looked up at Bruce.

"Wanna pack?" he asked, "Get some of the bigger shit outta the way?"

"Yeah," Bruce looked down at Jason and smiled, "And how about you? You wanna help us pack, too?" he asked childishly. "Or you just gonna type some more?"

Jason glared up at him through his mask and closed his laptop. He set it on the coffee table and walked back to the boxes on the far wall. Mike and Bruce shook their heads at him and walked back to the boxes. Amy and Victoria started to pack what little equipment was already set out and walk it out to the van. Bruce, Mike, and Jason started to pick up boxes and head outside with the girls. The Joker stood near the recliner and stared down at Nancy.

"Boy are you gonna be pissed when you wake up Nancy dear," he whispered to her. "I wish you'd talk. I love to hear you talk. I like it when you smile, too. I would _kill_ to see you smile. You know what I can't wait for? I can't wait to see you snap. I can't wait until you finally lose it. If I'm this bad, then you are just gonna be evil, sweetheart. Just plain amazing."

He stared at her a bit longer and looked up to check on his cronies progress, half of the boxes were gone. He looked back down at Nancy and brushed her bangs away from her eyes. His hand trailed down along her jaw down to her lips.

"It is just _sick_ how much I wanna kiss you Nancy," he told her, "Absolutely disgusting. You'd be afraid of me if I told you all the things I wanted to do to you. Ugh."

He turned and watched Amy and Victoria as they grabbed more boxes. Then Mike. Then Bruce. Then Jason. Amy. Jason. Bruce. _Nancy_. Victoria. Mike. Bruce. _Nancy_. Amy. Jason. Victoria. _Nancy_. The boxes vanished. He blinked and looked back down at Nancy. Her pouty, cherry lips were taunting him. He walked over to the couch and slumped down in it.

The Joker couldn't actually remember the last time he was obsessed with something. It might have been over something material: a knife, a gun, dynamite, gunpowder, gasoline. None of his obsessions had ever revolved around something living before. And right about now he couldn't tell if it bothered him or not. He knew he wanted Nancy Webber. He wanted her for himself.

/|\

Nancy woke up at about an hour later. She wasn't awake for very long. She took one look around the room, gave a frustrated sigh, rolled over, and either passed out again or fell asleep. No one could actually tell. Not even Mike, who was the only person who knew Nancy personally, could tell if she was faking or not. Being able to tell when people were faking sleep was one of his many awkward talents.

He and Bruce had been sitting around playing poker with Amy while their precious X-Box was stowed away in the van. Amy had been winning every single game so far. Their boss had actually joined in for a few rounds. He had won those ones. All ten of them.

"J has got to have the best poker face I have ever seen," Bruce said after losing another round to Amy.

"I know right? He just smiles the whole time," Mike added with a yawn. Bruce cocked his head to one side at him.

"Are you tired?" he asked in near disgust.

"Well, yeah. Its only-" Mike checked his watch, "11:00 o'clock."

"Can't believe you're-" Bruce yawned. Amy chuckled.

"Let it go Bruce," she said, "You know you're tired. Halo can be exhausting."

Bruce shook his head and sighed, "I fold. Poker's freakin' hard to play with masks on."

"I listen for breathing," Amy said, raking in the few quarters they had been using as chips.

"Me too," Mike said, "But you don't breathe Amy."

"Do to," she retorted, "Just not as loudly as some."

Bruce just shook his head again and Mike reached behind his mask to rub his tired eyes. Amy shoved the quarters they had been using as chips in her pocket and leaned back against the love seat where Victoria lay sleeping. She looked over at Jason who had stopped typing on his computer for the time being and sat staring blankly at the television, which wasn't even on. He was probably thinking about his computer. Her eyes wondered over to Mike and Bruce, whose heads were held tiredly in their hands, then over to Nancy, who lay either sleeping or unconscious. No one had figured out which one yet.

Mike looked up at Amy and bobbed his head forward a bit. Amy bobbed her head up to ask him what he was motioning at. He nodded his head again. Amy looked over her shoulder at the Joker, who had wandered over to the makeshift table they had made a while back. He seemed to be asleep. Amy looked back at Mike and pulled her mask up a bit.

"Oh my God," she mouthed.

Mike pulled his mask up too, "I know," he barely whispered.

"I didn't even think he could sleep," she mouthed again.

"Me neither," he laughed. They both looked back at him, then back at each other.

"Its eerie isn't it?" Amy said, "Even evil must sleep."

They both laughed a bit. Mike gave a fake evil laugh that sounded like a bad guy from a comic book and lowered his mask again. Amy did the same and looked back at Nancy.

"So what's up with her?" she asked.

Mike looked back and said, "A lot," he looked back at Amy, "Why?"

Amy looked back at the Joker and back at Mike again, "'Cause I saw J lookin' at her..."

"So," Mike shrugged, "I look at Nancy, too. You look at Nancy. Jason looks at Nancy. Bruce looks at Nancy. Even Vic-"

"No," Amy interjected, "I mean, like, _looking_ at her."

Mike thought for a moment then said, "Oh... oh. Oh! Oh-h-ho. Oh. Oh God. You don't think...?"

"I don't know what to think Mike," Amy said, "Not a clue."

"Well, I think you should go to sleep," they both heard a voice say.

Mike nearly jumped out of his skin when he looked up to find the Joker leaning against the love seat staring down at the two of them. Amy twitched slightly and tensed her shoulders, she didn't like it when people came up behind her.

"Not tired," she said in a strangled voice.

"I am, how about you Bruce?" Mike said. He looked at Bruce for an opinion but was met with snoring. "Oh yeah, "I ain't tired Mike!" Stupid dweeb."

"She looks tired," Amy pointed out, nodding over at Nancy.

"I would be to," Mike yawned, "-unconscious for three hours. Being unconscious and being asleep are two completely different things, I found out."

Amy shook her head, stood up, and swiped Victoria's feet off the cushions. Victoria grumbled angrily and leaned her head against her hand on the arm of the couch. Amy sat next to her and groaned when Victoria leaned over and rested her head on her shoulder. Mike chuckled a little and looked at Jason, suddenly realizing he wasn't staring blankly at all, he was asleep. He waved his hand in front of the egotists face. He didn't move. Mike laughed and sat himself up next to him.

"I wish we had markers," he giggled. Amy held back a laugh and attempted to push Victoria away.

The Joker had left and gone back to his table a while back and now sat tinkering with the wireless transmitter Amy had whipped up for him. He fiddled with the wiring a bit until he got bored and decided to watch everyone sleep. He would nod off every few minutes and wake back up if the walls so much as creaked. He would watch Nancy sleep. She bored him when she was asleep though. Not that he didn't enjoy looking at her, but she was much more fun when she was awake. She was sarcastic and witty and happy and funny. She was a total smart ass and he loved it.

But it wasn't just that, he liked her for so may other reasons. She was deeper than the others. She was scarred and left for the world to step on. She didn't let it though, that was what he really liked about her. She so close to losing it because she was so sick of the world trying to chew her up and spit her out. It was the thing that attracted him to her, he was like her in so many ways, on so many levels. He knew it bothered her. It buzzed around in her head like an angry wasp to know she was like a person like him. It just made him laugh.

At one point he actually stayed asleep for about an hour. When he woke he saw that Nancy had woken up and was sitting on the recliner looking around like she was in a different world. Then her eyes landed on him and she stopped and blinked. She rubbed her eyes tiredly and set the foot rest down and got up. She held her weight on one side as not to put pressure on her stitches.

"Where's my cane?" her voice cracked.

The Joker grimaced and thought about how he had left it in the car. It was probably a little outline of ashes by now, if Bruce had done his job right. He always did.

The Joker stood and strode quietly over to her. Nancy stiffened a bit and shoved her one hand in her pocket, the other lay uselessly in a sling.

"S'probably in a burning car somewhere," he said, shoving his hands in his pockets and jangling the knives there.

Nancy's stomach knotted at the sound and she winced. She pulled her hand from her pocket and popped her knuckles against her hip out of habit. She was nervous. She bit her tongue to keep her breath from coming out in gasps when he neared her.

"How'm I gonna walk?" she choked.

"I could carry ya', " he said, "Not that I haven't already taken the privilege of doing that. Or you could just limp around like House without his cane."

Nancy relaxed at that and shoved her hand back in her pocket. She looked over at the couch and frowned at Mike's sleeping form. He was snoring. Next to him was someone else who seemed to be staring at the television.

"Is he asleep?" she nodded toward the guy on the couch.

"Yeah," the Joker said, a grin finding its way up his face, "Why?"

"Nothin' he's just..." she turned back to him and frowned again, "Why're you looking at me like that?"

"Hm?" he raised his eyebrows at her.

"Yer just... staring at me," she said.

"Hm," he hummed again.

Nancy chewed on the inside of her cheek for a minute before looking back at the couches. There, on the floor at Mike's feet was another guy. A big, bulky guy that could probably rip her in half if he wanted to. His dark skin through off the white of his mask. On the love seat sat two girls: one with long greasy black hair that hung around her mask and shoulders, and another with shorter, darker, pixie-cut hair. The big guy on the floor started to snore. Nancy shook her head and looked back up at the Joker, who continued to ogle her.

"What do you want?" she sighed, rubbing her eyes again.

"Oh Nancy," he started. "I could go on for days about what I wanted."

"I mean why did you kidnap me?" she asked again.

"'Cause," he shrugged.

"Just so you could piss Rob off?" she asked.

"And you, and Jimmy, and the rest of the Gotham PD, and your friends, and-" he listed, bobbing his head from side to side.

"Okay, okay. I get it," Nancy said, "You just wanted to piss the world off."

"Yeah," he nodded happily.

Nancy sighed and rubbed her gauzed-covered shoulder. It wasn't painful as much as it was uncomfortable. It felt odd. She shook it off and looked around again.

I heard something about moving earlier," she said.

"Yep, tomorrow," he said, "The ole' group home downtown'll be easier to use then a big ol' warehouse. A bit less inconspicuous."

"Warehouses are a bit cliché," Nancy nodded.

"Try not to run away once we all get loaded up," the Joker giggled.

"Ha, ha," Nancy laughed, "A cripple joke. I got that. Funny."

"I thought so," he whispered against the back of her neck.

Nancy turned from the couches and grabbed at her neck. Her face flushed and she nearly lashed at him until she realized he was already halfway across the room.

[/|\]

**Holy crap, that only took forever and a day. Sorry I've been gone so long, my biology grade has been killing me, and right about now we have semester exams. Yippee. Anyway, to hate to much. I hope you liked this one as much as the others. **

**-Jess**


	25. NOT Shanked By Jesus

**Alrighty then, first of all, Merry Christmas! And no, I don't care if I offend people. :) Anyway, thanks for all the comments, reviews and encouragement. You make my day.**

/|\

The ride over to the group home hadn't been as bad as Nancy had initially thought. She sat in between the two couch girls while Mike, the big guy, and the guy who had been staring at the TV the night before sat in the next row. The Joker sat in the driver's seat, tearing through town like a madman. Nancy just hoped and prayed that her stitches wouldn't snap and pop in her hip. Her shoulder didn't hurt as much.

Mike would look back at her every so often like a guilty criminal. Which, ironically, was exactly what he was. The dark guy would just nudge him and mumble about the guy next to him. The quiet guy just stared out the window.

Nancy would look over at the two girls sometimes; the pixie girls seemed nice enough. She'd cock her head to one side happily and go back to looking outside. The other girl, however, refused to do anything but stare at Nancy angrily. Nancy would shrink away and stare at the floor or try and fiddle with her cane, only to realize she didn't have it. Her cane was a little pile of ashes by now. She would sigh angrily and glare at the psychopath in the driver's seat as best she could.

_The stupid bastard_, she'd think to herself, t_he man's going to be the death of me... freakin' stitches' re gonna pop!_

Then she'd watch him giggle at the pained expression on her face every time he'd make a turn. Nancy would mumble to herself and rub her knee anxiously. The pixie girl next to her would look at her and sigh, then look at the other girl and sigh again, the latter in frustration.

By the time they reached the actual house, Nancy was not only in pain, but quite nauseous as well. Nancy did not get motion sickness, but apparently the Joker's driving was enough to make anyone sick. Even Mike and the big guy looked woozy as they tripped out of the van. The other guy remained stoic and still. Nancy was waiting for him to double over and throw up from locking his knees. The pixie girl and the greasy chick hopped out of the van and leaned against it to gain some equilibrium. The Joker strolled around to the other side of the van to open the trunk.

"Start unloadin' boys!" he shouted at Mike and the other two, "'Cept you techie," he pointed at the stiff guy, "You go inside with Techie Two and check the place for bugs. Mob's still after my ass remember?" He addressed them like children.

Pixie girl and the stiff guy trudged off into the house, the pixie looking none to happy with having to go inside. The other girl continued to stare angrily at Nancy and eventually she walked off to help Mike and the big guy drag in boxes before someone saw them.

The house was deeper in town, which meant less attention. It was a pretty inconspicuous place: the windows were boarded up, the molding was peeling along with the door which seemed to be hanging on by the rust on the hinges. It almost seemed haunted. Nancy sighed and ran her tongue along the inside of her cheek before leaning against the painted white steel of the vans side. She wished she had her iPod.

/|\

Nancy had come to find out that Pixie Girl's name was Amy, and that she was exceedingly nice for someone who worked for a man like the Joker. Her brother Jason, on the other hand, was very pompous and self-absorbed. The other girl, Victoria, wasn't a very nice person either. It turned out that the only reason she didn't like Nancy was because she was pretty. This made Nancy laugh for an incredibly long time. Mike introduced Nancy to the big guy, whose name was Bruce. Bruce was insanely jolly, like Amy. It was only because, at this point, his X-Box worked on the TV that had been left behind by the houses previous owners.

Mike tried, at all costs, to stay away from Nancy in fear of being beaten to a bloody pulp. "All costs," included hiding behind the big guy, Bruce, whenever he walked by her. Nancy would make a face at him and continue to brood.

The Joker had simply dropped her off in the living room and walked off to unpack his things. Not like she could actually go anywhere. For a while she just sat there, plotting escape plans that could never happen. That was until she heard sighs and grumbles from the kitchen just a ways over.

"You can't even figure a fridge out Mike," came Bruce's deep voice.

Nancy leaned to one side and continued to listen, "Shut up, man," Mike sighed. "I can figure this out, it just takes me a little while."

"No kidding," Bruce shook his head.

Nancy saw Mike look around every inch of the refrigerator, trying to figure out what was wrong with it. She shook her head and rested her elbow against the arm of the couch. The big guy looked over at her and gave his head one sharp upward nod, Nancy nodded back and sighed at Mike. She staggered to her feet and limped over to the door and leaned against the door frame. Mike looked up and his shoulders fell. Nancy gave the fridge one good look over and started to laugh.

"What?" Mike asked dumbly.

Nancy limped over to the fridge and knelt down next to it. She reached behind it and plugged it in, and the refrigerator hummed to life.

"Damn, you's is stupid Mike," Bruce said.

Nancy leaned against one of the counters and smirked at him, "You're no better," she said, "You shoulda' figured that out too." She started to laugh again and limped back to the couch. She could hear Bruce making noises at her.

Pixie Girl-Amy was sitting there fiddling with a controller. Nancy sat on the far end of the couch, not wanting to upset her.

"I'm not gonna bite," she assured looking up from her contraption, "It's Victoria you have to worry about."

Nancy smiled a little and rubbed her shoulder. It wasn't hurting as much anymore. The doctor had told her that she would need to take it easy on her arm for a while, but other than that she could do whatever she wanted with her other arm. Amy cocked her head to one side at her in question.

"Got shanked," Nancy responded to the silent question.

"Well, that's apparent," Amy said, "Who?"

"Jesus," the Joker said from the hallway. The hall lead to the staircase which further lead to the upstairs bedrooms.

"What?" Amy asked.

"I was not shanked by Jesus," Nancy shook her head and couldn't help but chuckle, "It was a guy who thought he was Jesus, and by the time this whole thing happened-" she motioned towards her gauze covered hip, "it was all about some freshman thing…"

"Ah, high school," Amy sighed, "I do remember it so fondly!"

"I don't," Nancy and the Joker sighed.

"First of all, that was sarcasm," Amy looked at them oddly, "and second, that was just a bit to creepy for my taste."

"I thought it was funny," the Joker laughed.

"You think everything's funny, Chuckles," Nancy said.

The Joker shrugged and looked up at Victoria when she skipped down the stairs. She skidded to a stop and looked at Nancy.

"What're you doing here?" she asked.

"Tell you the truth, even I don't know," Nancy shrugged.

Victoria seemed to glare at her for a second before going and sitting on the love seat. Bruce and Mike wandered back in the room reporting that there was nothing in the fridge. Mike looked at Amy.

"TV work?" he asked.

"It should," Amy said.

She got up and pressed the power button on the TV set and flipped through a few channels of static. She stopped when one of the stations cleared. It was the news, they seemed to be talking about the mob.

"Don't they ever get bored with the whole mob thing?" Nancy sighed.

"Guess not," the Joker said. He walked over and leaned on the back of the couch.

"_Now what I heard was that some mobsters are supposedly coming back from the dead."_

"_No. No, its not anything like that. What's happening is mobsters like Maroni and Gambol are finally getting out of the hospital. See, what Maroni's saying is that-"_

"_Harvey Dent tried to kill him! Yeah, yeah, we've all heard it. Its a load of bull. Who I'm really interested in is Gambol. See, this guy says the Joker attacked him. Tried to carve his face up. Well now this all makes sense."_

"_Exactly. The Joker is a maniac, he would do something like this-"_

"_And he did! Have you seen the recent pictures of Gambol? He looks just about as bad as the Joker himself!"_

"_Yes, yes we've seen the pictures, and we all know Gambol looks terrible, but what I wanna know is what he's been doing lately."_

"_We've heard so many rumors that its hard to keep track of what's what anymore. Some say he's going back underground, some say he's running around the city looking for the Joker-"_

"_Revenge?"_

"_Oh, well, yes of course. You would too if someone carved up your face!"_

"_Me? No. No I'd stay as far away from most everything until the heat died down. A-and I suggest that Gambol do the same. He's as much a criminal as the Joker-"_

"_Oh, most would beg to differ."_

"_Yes, yes, I know the Joker is the most feared criminal in Gotham and all, but we're missing the point here: if Gambol goes after the Joker, we have a better chance of losing the both of them. See, because Gambol is such a big time in the mob, which of course means he's being tracked nearly 24/7, he's bound to attract the attention of the Gotham City Police! You see where I'm going here?"_

"_Yeah, yeah. I see what you're saying. If Gambol goes after the Joker, then we could probably get them both at the same time, right?"_

"_Exactly. Thats what I'm saying. If Gambol wants to go after the Joker, let 'im. Not like we have anything to lose."_

"_See now, that's not true. Gambol is a very prestigious member of the mob, which means he has several other groups or families, or whatever you want to call them, backing him in whatever he does! That means that if we have nearly the entire mob going after one guy, we pretty much have a mob war."_

"_Especially considering the fact that the Joker has men of his own. We could have a real problem if all of this goes down like most people think it will."_

"_Alright, it seems we're running out of time... and we'll see you-"_

"Turn it off," the Joker said, "Now we have a problem."

"Problem's right," Mike said, "Now we have the whole mob up our asses. What the hell are we gonna do now?"

"Watch what we do, who we talk to, what places we hold up," Amy listed, "We'll have to look over our shoulders now, whatever we do."

"I thought you killed Gambol," Bruce insisted.

"Apparently not enough," Nancy said.

"Blondie's right," the Joker said, "Wasn't dead enough."

Nancy glared up at him for a moment before looking back at the TV as Amy turned it off. Jason finally made his way downstairs from the bedrooms. His mask was propped on top of his head until he turned the corner in the hall and addressed them.

"Four bedrooms, three bathrooms, attic, basement, kitchen, living-" he started.

"Okay, what the hell are you going on about?" Mike interrupted.

"Everything's clean," Jason finished. "No bugs or camera's."

"Did you say basement?" the Joker asked.

"Yes."

"Well Nancy, we know where to put you now!" the Joker laughed.

"Be glad I'm crippled," Nancy hissed. The Joker just giggled and ruffled her hair.

Bruce and Mike decided to play Halo after a while and Victoria went upstairs to check out the bedrooms. Nancy and Amy made bets for the next hour about how soon it would take for Mike to beat Bruce.

"Mike says you play a mean game of Halo," Amy hinted.

"You want to see Mike get his ass kicked don't you?" Nancy hinted back.

"Yes."

"Okay then," Nancy said, "Mike. I need to kick your ass."

"You got it," Mike giggled a little, "give me a second."

Mike beat Bruce in a matter of seconds and Nancy was finally given a controller. She stood and sat down on the coffee table, spinning around to face the screen. They adjusted the settings and started the game. Nancy heard someone settle onto the couch behind her and laugh every time she killed Mike. After about five minutes, Mike and Nancy started to chat pleasantly with one another. Asking about movies and friends and music. They would shove each other every so often to them each other off. Nancy still won.

"What happened?" Amy asked, "I blinked and it was over."

"Nancy kicked my ass as only Nancy can," Mike sighed again.

"I'm a little out of practice," Nancy said, "You killed me twice."

"You killed me twenty-five time," Mike said.

The Joker chuckled. Amy shook her head and decided to make her way up the stairs. Mike put the X-Box away and went upstairs too. Bruce and Jason tried each other at Halo when Nancy turned and sat back on the couch. After losing to each other several times, the two finally gave up and went upstairs. By that time, it was already eight o'clock at night.

"What do you think about the whole Gambol thing?" Nancy asked the Joker.

He looked at her as she stared at the blank TV screen.

"Not much," he said, "What do you think about getting up the stairs?"

Nancy let out one hard laugh before looking over at him and saying, "You just love those cripple jokes don't you?"

"Yes, and you don't?" he quipped.

"Not particularly," Nancy hissed.

"Nancy!" Mike shouted. Nancy jumped. "I found something for you!"

"It better be something I can kick your ass with!" Nancy said, struggling to get to her feet.

The Joker stood, slipped an arm around her waist, and brought her to her feet. Nancy gripped the front of his coat to balance herself and looked up at him. His other hand slid up to her cheek and he brushed the hair from her face.

"Nervous, Nancy?" he asked.

She shoved away from him and grabbed the side of the couch, she didn't look away from him. He licked his scars at her and looked at Mike as he slid down the banister. He was holding something.

"If I give this to you, you have to promise not to kill me with it," Mike said.

"Only beat you," Nancy insisted. Mike sighed and threw her the cane he had found upstairs. "Where the hell'd you find this?" she asked.

"One of the bedrooms," he said, "This place must've been managed by some old dude."

"I was wondering why it smelled like old people up in here," Bruce's voice came from upstairs.

Nancy just shook her head and watched the Joker walk up the stairs. Mike looked at her for a second. Nancy shook her head at him. She made her way up the stairs and Mike followed. He and Jason and Bruce would be sharing one room, while Nancy and the other girls had another room. The Joker had a room to himself. Nancy's room had tow bunk beds, a dresser, a desk, and a night stand. Nancy smiled at the desk and remembered that her computer was at her house, then she sighed and leaned against the door frame. Then she also realized her iPod was also at her house.

"I'm gonna die of music deprivation," she sighed.

Victoria and Amy looked up at her. She shrugged and limped over to one of the beds.

"I call top!" Victoria claimed.

"Not like I could use it anyway," Nancy shrugged.

"Chill out Vic," Amy said.

For the next few minutes Amy and Victoria argued over who would sleep where, not that it mattered. Nancy had a feeling Victoria just like to argue. Somewhere along the line she made her way to her to the bottom bunk of what would later be Amy's bed and went to sleep, leaving the other two to argue with each other. She dreamt about the Joker that night.

[/|\]

**Alrighty then, I should have the next one out soon enough. Hope you enjoyed this one enough, it only took me forever and a day to type it. I've been having writers block issues lately, it will get done though. I promise you that. **

**I would like to thank all of you for your support so far and I hope you stick with this story as it unfolds. You have no idea how happy it makes me to read your reviews. Thank you!**

**-Jess**


	26. Robbin' a Bank!

**So, where we are. Another chapter chock full of... stuff. Its different every chapter, I just make it up as I go most of the time. Sorry to disappoint you, but I'm not much of a rough draft type of person. Just takes time out of creative thinking. If you ask me, rough drafts or for high school research papers. Anyway (got a little off topic there didn't I?), on with the chapter! Oh! And one more thing:**

**Disclaimer (for you people who like to see these): I don't own anything, or anyone, except the characters I made like Nancy & Co. Everything else belongs to DC Comics, those lucky sons a' mothers.**

/|\

After watching the news, the Gotham PD and Nancy's friends had several new things to worry about. Firstly, Gambol wasn't dead, just left for dead. Which ultimately meant that he was going to go after to the Joker. That meant that Nancy was in even more danger. With one hysterical maniac holding her hostage and a prestigious member of the mob going after the Joker, meaning he'd eventually get to Nancy, the poor girl was in double the trouble.

"How the hell did we not know about Gambol?" Jim asked angrily.

"Who knows," Robert sighed hopelessly, "The media is a strange little industry. They release what they want, when they want. They don't care about innocent lives."

"That doesn't matter," Carol said. She had been at the police station for the past two days, "We need to find Nancy!"

"Carol's right," Anthony agreed.

"I still can't believe Nancy hasn't been the main focus of the news lately," Robert said, "You'd think someone being kidnapped by the Joker would be big news."

"Guess not," Jim said, "They've been really into the mob recently, and we've sent our information to them. It should be on tomorrow."

"Don't know why it wasn't on yesterday," Robert mumbled. He was very unhappy with the situation.

No one but Nancy's friends and family seemed to care much, which didn't make any sense to him. Nearly her entire school would help her if they had something to gain from it. That just made him angrier. Carol and Anthony seemed to be the only people who truly cared enough to help.

It bothered him as he when to the lounge to get another cup of coffee. The filter was old and soaked, so he tossed it in the trash and started a new pot. He watched the coffee dribble from the spout for a while until heading back into the office to watch the news some more.

By now he had forgotten the name of the new host for Gotham Tonight. He just wasn't Mike Engle.

"-and ladies and gentlemen, before we go I would like to inform you all of the kidnapping of seventeen year old Nancy Webber, who was reported missing yesterday afternoon at around five o'clock p.m. The girl is thought to be kidnapped by the Joker, who we reported to have escape police custody yesterday at the same time. Please, if you have any information about this or any other crime, call-"

"_There_ it was!" Anthony said throwing his hands in the air. He was also very upset.

Carol shook her head at the television as the new host of Gotham Tonight gave descriptions of Nancy's appearance. Anthony say down after scowling at the TV set and rubbed his tired eyes. The news faded out into the weather and finally to another show. Carol looked at her phone for the time, it was about 8:30 at night. She shook her head again and called her mother to tell her she'd be out for a while longer. Her mother started to cry quietly when Carol told her they hadn't found Nancy yet.

"She was such a good girl," she sobbed, "Such a sweet, helpful girl-"

"She _is_ a good girl," Carol interrupted, "Just because we haven't found her yet doesn't mean she's dead. We'll know-" Carol paused and swallowed, "We'll know when we've run out of time..."

She hung up and sat down, holding her head in her hands. She felt hopeless now. She looked at Anthony for some sort of support, but he gave her the same hopeless stare. They both knew deep down that they would probably never see their friend again.

/|\

Nancy sat up in bed in a cold sweat. She had spent half the night tossing and turing around from nightmares and the other half trying to figure out why she was dreaming about the Joker. She had just woken up from another Joker dream. She rubbed her eyes and lay back down on her pillow, her short, blonde hair getting in her eyes again. She swiped it away and held her arm over her eyes. Her mother used to do the same thing. Loud voices came from downstairs and Nancy sat up to listen. They weren't exactly angry voices, just loud.

She swung her legs over the side of her bed and looked for her jeans. She had taken them off sometime in the night. She grabbed them from the end of the bed and slipped them on along with her shoes and grabbed her cane. She reached for the door in time to have her fingers nearly chopped off when it swung open.

"You're up!" Amy chirped.

"Yes," Nancy held her hand to her chest. She looked down at it, realizing she wasn't using her sling.

"You're not wearing your little sling thing!" Amy chirped again.

"Yes," Nancy said again with a little grin.

"Don't go in our bathroom."

"We have a bathroom?"

"Yeah. Don't go in it."

"Why?" Nancy was confused.

"Look," Amy took her by the wrist, thought again when Nancy cringed in pain, and decided to simply lead the way.

They walked down the hallway about five good steps and Amy opened a door, apparently the one to the bathroom.

"Watch," she said.

She turned on the bath faucet and waited. Nancy heard a hideous gurgling noise and watched a somewhat brownish substance expel itself onto the fiberglass of the bath tub floor.

"That is sick!" she laughed. She couldn't help but be amused by the whole thing, "It's so sick it's awesome!"

"Ours was worse," Mike said from behind her, "Ours had spiders, then this black. . . goopy stuff then the rusty water."

"That is _also_ sick in an awesome way," Nancy laughed again, "Except the spiders." Nancy shivered an made a disgusted noise.

"Nancy suffers from arachnophobia," Mike whispered like she wasn't there.

Nancy swatted at him with her cane and went back to watching the rust tinted water gush from the faucet. The tap gave another gurgle and spurted something black and slimy.

"Like that! Like that!" Mike shouted, jumping up and down and pointing like a kid at the pet store, "Ewwww, gross..."

Amy shook her head at him and stood up from the tub and walked out the door. Nancy followed her, and Mike after that. Nancy stopped at the stairs and frowned at them.

"You go ahead Mike," she sighed.

"'Kay, need help?" he said.

"Sure," Nancy grabbed his shoulder.

"Poor little crippled Nancy," Mike sang.

"Just you wait Mike," Nancy growled.

They got to the ground floor and Mike scurried away before Nancy could hit him over the head with her cane.

"Morning sleepy head!" the Joker laughed at her.

"I'll beat you too Giggle-Fits," she warned.

He was sitting on the couch next to Victoria. Nancy felt the inert urge to hit her extremely hard with something, but she shook it off like everyone else and walked over to the kitchen. She hoped there was something to eat in there, she hadn't eaten in nearly two days.

As she walked in she could have sworn she heard Mike whimper, "Hide me."

"That's right you sissy, hide," she cooed. "I'm still gonna kick your ass."

"Where is your sling?" a pale voice asked.

Nancy looked over at Jason who sat in a chair at the other end of the room, "Up in the room," she said. "Shoulder doesn't hurt today."

"You should let it rest," he said, looking back at his laptop.

"It's been resting," she looked back at the fridge. "It has to work now just as much as the other one."

Jason remained silent and continued to tap away. Bruce, who stood across from her on the other side of the island, shrugged and looked through a box he had hoisted onto the counter.

"Got any food in there?" Nancy asked.

"Yeah, hungry?" Bruce asked.

Nancy nodded vigorously and limped around the island to Bruce who tossed her an apple. She caught it with her left hand and leaned against the counter. She rubbed it against her tank top and took a big bite.

"That hungry?" Bruce asked.

Nancy nodded happily and turned back to the living room. Mike and Amy were playing Halo on the X-Box again. She limped in the room and sat on the love seat with her apple and watched the two beat each other senseless. The screen would shift sometimes and Mike or Amy would have to lean forward and hit it to make it straighten out again. It was an older TV, Nancy could tell. It was used to having people beat it she was sure. Group homes weren't exactly the friendliest of places if she could imaging things right.

"You wanna play Nancy?" Amy asked after getting beat one to many times.

"Sure," Nancy grinned evilly.

She sat on the coffee table next to Mike and ran through level after level of Slayer mode before he gave up and handed Bruce the controller when he walked in. Bruce was even easier to beat than Mike. She ran circles around him with Needlers and Plasma Rifles. She would fly up in Banshees and pelt him from above with hot gobs of liquid plasma. Bruce gave up too after a while and handed Amy the controller. Nancy liked Amy, so she went easy on her. She won anyway. Victoria tried, and failed, to push her over when it was her turn. Once Nancy had conquered everyone in the room but the Joker, Jason came in to get his fair share of ass whooping.

"You play a mean game of Halo Nancy," he admitted in defeat.

"One of my many talents," she said proudly. She heard Mike giggle, "You just thought of a dozen ways to pervert that statement didn't you Mike?"

"Y-y-yes," he giggled.

"Idiot," she sighed.

She handed the controller to Bruce and went to sit on the couch. Victoria glared at her from behind her mask as she sat down. Amy sat in the love seat next to Mike and made bets with him about who would win. Mike lost.

"Mike?" Nancy asked.

"Hm?"

"You have your iPod?" she begged. "Please say yes."

"Yeah," he fished it from his pocket and threw it at her.

She turned it on with a content sigh and leaned her arm against the couch. She closed her eyes and dozed for a minute until Mike stood up and started to jump around yelling, "Go Bruce! Go! Kick 'is ass!"

The rest of the week went through the same odd pattern of waking up, eating apples, and playing Halo. Amy finally got the shower to work after about three hours of checking the water flow. The black sludge balls had stopped excreting themselves from the faucet except when Victoria walked by, at which point everyone would laugh at the thought of the disgusted look on her pasty face. Mike, somewhere along the line, had found a small family of mice in the attic, and had come screaming down from its reaches nearly knocking Nancy off her cane. It made everyone laugh anyway. Then came Friday...

/|\

Nancy woke with a start after another falling dream -she had been having a lot of those lately- and made her way downstairs. There wasn't as much noise as there had been in the past few days which worried her quite a bit. She limped down the stairs and was greeted by Mike, who was holding a very large gun.

"Hiya Nancy!" he yipped.

"Whatcha doin' there Mike?" she asked.

"Gonna rob a bank," he said.

"Are you now?" she turned to Amy as she walked in. "Robbing a bank?"

"Yep, boss says we've been under the radar long enough," she said. "Time to scare some people shitless."

"Yer' coming too Nancy dear," the Joker's voice said from behind her.

"Am I?" she turned to him and hid her surprise when she realized how close he was standing to her.

"Yep," he said. "You need a mask."

"And gloves, unless you wanna get caught," Amy suggested.

Nancy sighed and rubbed her eyes, she wasn't exactly sure if she was awake or not. Bruce walked in with another large gun and an apple. He tossed it at her and she caught it. Victoria came down from upstairs with another gun. Nancy noticed they were all AK-47's. It made her sick. Mike cocked his head to one side at her and she just shook her head.

"You can't rob a place in the clothes you were kidnapped in," the Joker said, walking around to lean against the couch.

"I've got another shirt," Mike nodded at her.

"I've got another jacket in the room," Amy said, "And gloves."

"'Kay, sure," Nancy held her head and moved her hand down to rub her shoulder.

The room was quiet for a while longer until the Joker stood and made his way upstairs. Amy and Mike followed him and then Nancy after another moment. Amy threw Nancy a jacket when she walked in and Mike threw her his extra shirt a second later. She shooed them away and closed the door. She took off her shirt and put on Mike's button-down. The door opened in the middle of her dressing and she looked over her shoulder to glare at the Joker.

"I'm still getting dressed you know," she growled.

"So?" he shrugged.

Nancy shook her head in frustration and buttoned up the last few buttons of Mike's shirt and walked towards the door. The Joker handed her a mask and stood a moment longer before turning to leave.

"How'm I going to walk?" she asked fidgeting with her new mask.

"Just limp around," he shrugged again, "It'd be weird if you walked around on a cane like Nancy Webber did."

"I'm still Nancy," she insisted.

"Not to the police you won't be."

As he walked away, Nancy looked down at her mask. It was stark white like everyone else's, the big blue lips were bent down in an exaggerated frown, and the nose had a big red dot on it. She sighed and slipped it over her face, grabbing Amy's coat on the way out the room and down the stairs. Mike looked her oddly when she slumped against the hallway doorway.

"You look weird," he said.

"Now you know what everyone is thinking when they look at you Mike," she quipped. He gave a fake laugh and tossed he a hand gun. "Some friend you are," she hummed. She turned it over in her hands until Amy handed her a pair of gloves.

"You'll need those," she said.

Nancy sighed and shook her head, slipping her clammy hands in the gloves. She flexed her fingers to get rid of the nervous tension. She popped her knuckles and chewed on the inside of her cheek, nothing worked to keep her hands from shaking. Mike tossed her his iPod and went back to looking his gun over. The music helped for a while until the Joker walked out jangling the keys to the van.

"C'mon," he said.

Nancy shoved the gun in her coat pocket and tossed Mike his iPod. Bruce patted her shoulder with his heavy hand and led her outside. Amy, Victoria and Nancy sat in the back, Bruce and the others next, and the Joker sat in the drivers seat. The van rumbled to life, and for the first time in a long time, Nancy wished she was in a million other places but the one she was in now.

/|\

The van screeched to a halt in front of the Gotham City Bank, and Nancy stumbled out behind Victoria with Amy following close behind. Nancy wished she was back in the van.

"Whado I do?" she had asked Amy.

"Follow me, and try not to talk to much unless I tell you to," she said flatly.

"I don't know how to shoot," Nancy shivered.

"Then don't," Amy shrugged. "We'll do the shooting. Trust me, with that mask on, no one'll make a sound."

"Why?" Nancy asked.

"Tell you later," Amy said.

Nancy scurried behind Amy now, glancing over her shoulder as they made their way up the steps toward the bank doors. Bruce shoved the doors open and let a few rounds out of his AK-47. The shells clattered to the floor as the deafening noise rang through the nearly empty building. Nancy shivered at the familiar noise and followed Amy around the corner to the tellers.

"Hiya folks!" the Joker shouted. "Miss me?"

The women behind the counters raised their hands in surrender and started to cry. Nancy knew the feeling to well. Amy went over one of the counters with Jason to disengage the alarms. They came back a moment later, dragging a couple tellers over the counters. Amy ran down a hallway with Mike, who was holding a very large bag. Nancy jumped when Bruce patted her on the back.

"You look nervous!" he laughed.

"I'm to nervous to kick your ass right now," her teeth were chattering.

"Look," he turned her around and bent down to her level, "Just walk around in front of 'em. They're like snakes! They're mo' scare of you then you are o' them. Trust me."

Nancy nodded and turned around to find the Joker leaning against one of the counters trying to chat with one of the hostages. The poor guy looked like he was about to soil himself. Nancy chuckled and Bruce patted her on the back again. She nodded again and took the hand gun from her coat pocket. She looked over at Jason who was getting rid of the cameras and back at Bruce as he knocked a security officer unconscious. She looked back at the hostages and started to pace in front of them, throwing occasional glances at the Joker whenever she passed.

"Why so serious doll?" he asked as she passed.

She shook her head at him and sighed. She was shaking, she was sure. She chewed on her cheek and looked at the tellers as she passed them, they cowered in terror. She kept wondering why, but she remembered that Amy would tell her later so she dropped it and moved on. Mike and Amy ran back in the room a moment later with about seven huge bags of money.

"Van?" Mike asked.

The Joker looked at his watch. "Just a sec," he said.

Nancy looked back at Bruce and Jason, who just walked cautiously over to them.

"Where's little miss Pasty?" she hissed.

"Comin'," Bruce said jabbing a thumb back towards the door.

He waved his gun menacingly at some of the hostages as Nancy looked over his shoulder and out the door- Victoria was in the van, speeding toward the banks glass double-doors. The van crashed through the doors and halfway across the room before Victoria did a tail spin, made a 180 turn and hit the brakes. The Joker nodded his approval and swept at the air with his hand, Mike and Bruce started to load the bags into the vans open trunk. Nancy gawked for a moment before Amy gave her a little push. Nancy glanced at the license plates and realized someone had put duct tape over the numbers. She scurried forward and ducked in the through the door after Amy, the boys got in the middle row like before and the Joker hopped in next to Nancy. Victoria glared back at her before hitting the gas.

The van's wheels squeaked against the bank's marble floors as it peeled out and sped through the opening Victoria had made. Nancy shoved her gun in the pocket of her coat and leaned back against the seat.

Th Joker patted her on the shoulder, "See?" he said, "That wasn't so bad!"

Nancy brought her mask up a bit and glared at him. "I hate you."

The Joker laughed and ruffled her hair. Nancy pulled her mask back over her face and sighed. She was tired, she could hear her pulse thumping in her ears. She had never had a bigger adrenaline rush in her life.

/|\

Nancy's jitters had worn off by the time they pulled up to the group home. Victoria backed the van up to the door and opened the trunk. A couple of the bags fell to ground and were picked up by Bruce. Mike grabbed two, Jason grabbed two, and the Joker grabbed the last one.

"Where do ya' want 'em J?" Mike asked.

"Extra bedroom upstairs," he said.

"They call you J?" Nancy grinned.

"Yeah, easier I guess," he looked at her and chuckled.

"What?"

"Nothin' its just weird seein' my mask on someone else," he laughed a little and tossed Victoria the last bag of cash as she walked by.

"So I take it this is why the poor ladies behind the counters looked like they were about to piss themselves?" Nancy adjusted her mask.

"Yep," the Joker said.

"Great," Nancy sighed.

She leaned against the side of the van, took off her mask, and rubbed her hip: it was sore from walking. Now she just hoped he stitches hadn't stretched or popped. She looked up the Joker. He was looking back.

"Stitches buggin' ya'?" he asked.

"Just my hip," Nancy nodded, "Doc said the muscles would take some time to mend themselves enough to where I could walk."

"I'll check 'em if you want," the Joker suggested.

"I'll think about it," she sighed.

She stood upright and started to walk back towards the front door. She heard the trunk close behind her and the Joker turn on his heel to catch up with her. She looked over her shoulder at him and felt her foot slip against the gravel. In most cases, Nancy could very easily catch herself and beat gravity in its little game to frustrate and injure her, but in her current state this was not the case, so she just gasped and flailed at the air. But she didn't feel the ground or the gravel, she just felt something gripped in her hands. She peeked through her tightly closed lids and looked up at the Joker who had one one arm around her waist and the other behind her head. His eyes wandered over her as he lifted her to her feet.

"Lets check those stitches," he said.

"Y-yeah." Nancy looked down at her hands and let go of the Joker's coat.

"You blush a lot you know that?" he asked.

"Shut up and help me in the house," she groaned in embarrassment.

He ran his hand through her hair as he let go of her. She looked away and rubbed her face. She turned on her heel and walked through the open door, only to have Mike throw something at her. She caught it, it was her cane, and leaned against it.

"Feel better?" he asked.

"Been better, also been worse," Nancy replied. "I'll live."

"Sure hope so!" Mike laughed. He had already set up the X-Box and was playing against Bruce.

Amy shook her head at him and looked back up with Nancy with what she imagined would be a smile. Victoria came down from upstairs and glared at Nancy, or at least thats what she imagined she was doing. Nancy took her jacket and threw it back to Amy along with her gloves, she decided to keep Mike's shirt for a while.

When Nancy had finally made it up the stairs she met Jason, who was just leaving to spare bedroom. She got a peak at what was inside: boxes, bags, wires, masks, and other extra stuff. Nancy had expected something a bit more extravagant, like a nuclear warhead or something, but there wasn't one, and she couldn't help but feel a little relieved. She walked a bit further, into her room, and turned on the light.

"Not enough light in here," the Joker's voice said from behind her.

"There's plenty of light, what're you talking about?" Nancy turned to him.

"My room has a window."

Nancy squinted at him and drew back at the idea. He already made her nervous enough.

He's a pedo! Her mind shouted, He's gonna rape you man! Run for it!

But Nancy just shook her head and turned off the light. "Fine."

"Don't be so enthusiastic about it Nancy," he droned at her.

"Bite me," she droned back.

She walked down the hallway a bit more down to where she assumed the Joker spent most of his nights, and waited. He nudged the door open and held it open for her. His room did have a window she realized as she walked in, making the while room glow with the sunset. Nancy hadn't realized they had been gone so long.

"Where are they?" the Joker asked. He had tossed his coat and jacket on his bed which, Nancy noticed, was not his favorite color.

"Left shoulder, right hip," she said flatly, uncomfortably.

"Okey-dokey then, "he said. He tossed his gloves on his bed and rolled up his sleeves as he walked toward her.

He licked his lips and cradled the right side of her face with one hand while his other moved her shirt away from his line of vision. Nancy tensed and swallowed nervously but remained still. She wasn't used to human contact.

"You froze up the bank," he said.

"Which time?" she said with a short laugh.

"When Bruce started shooting," he said, it was nearly a whisper now.

"Yeah," she stopped short and tensed up with a gasp when he ran his thumb over the gash.

"Hurt?" his fingers glided down her collarbone.

"No," she shivered, "Just- weird feeling."

"What kind of weird?" he giggled.

"Shut up," she sighed.

"Hip?" he asked.

"Sure, just gimme a second wouldja?" she asked, her face starting to flush.

"Sure, sure," he backed off.

Nancy turned away from him and sighed, turning back. "Can I get Amy to check these?" she asked in desperation.

"Do you really think Amy knows how to check stitches?" the Joker retorted.

"No," Nancy sighed.

She turned again and ran a hand through her hair.

"I can do it if you want," he said. It was nearly a threat.

"No!" Nancy said.

The Joker mumbled something like, "Not like I don't know what everything looks like," and turned around to look out the window. Nancy glared at him over her shoulder before sighing and looking down at her jeans. She grumbled something about hating life and undid her pants. The gauze didn't look that bad to her. Then she thought: Gauze.

"Shit," she hissed.

"What?" he asked.

"The gauze is still on," she rubbed her face.

"So? I'll cut it off," the Joker shrugged, and walked over to his coat, sorting through the knives there.

"What?" Nancy nearly shrieked in terror.

"Yeah," he said in a nonchalant tone. "Why not?"

Nancy babbled wordlessly, not really able to come to a firm conclusion as to why he shouldn't.

"Because!" she said at last.

"Because, why?" he asked back in the same panicky voice. Nancy tried to conjure up another reason, but her interrupted her, "Listen Nancy, do you know how long I've been using knives?"

"I dunno," Nancy shrugged.

"A long time," he confirmed, "So look: if I cut you, you can hit me with your little cane or something. Okay?I promise won't cut-cha I'm a man of my word."

Nancy sighed and licked her lips and finally said, "Fine."

"Okay," the Joker sighed.

He knelt down in front of her and Nancy stopped herself from letting every dirty joke she had ever heard run through her head. She kept the glow on her cheeks from lighting up the room by holding her face in her hands and peeking through her fingers at the window. The whole skyline of Gotham glowed orange and yellow as the sun settled over the building tops. The Joker stood holding a wad of gauze and the skyline vanished.

"See, all done," he said, "Cute undies by the way."

Nancy snarled and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt. "Check. The damn. Stitches," she demanded.

"Okay," the Joker said in the same demanding tone. But for a moment he didn't move, he just looked down at her with his big dark eyes while she looked up with her big bright ones. After a few minutes of that, Nancy's grip had worn off, and the Joker finally licked his lips and kelt back down to look at her stitches.

His hands would move from one hip to the other, one keeping her steady and the other keeping her jeans away from the stitches. He ran his finger across the torn flesh once and Nancy nearly shoved him away.

"That as bad as the shoulder?" he giggled.

"Worse," she shivered, her face a lovely shade of apple red.

He stood after a while and buttoned her pants for her. Nancy grabbed his wrists and looked up at him with cruel thoughts running through her mind. He wrenched himself from her grip with ease and leaned forward. Nancy tensed and reached back for her cane-

"How far back does the one on your shoulder go?" he asked, his face inches from hers.

"N-not very far I don't think," she shivered.

"I think I should check it," he purred.

"I- sure." Nancy shook her head.

She turned and undid her shirt a few buttons and lowered it around her shoulders. The Joker moved his hands around her neck and shoulder again, making sure it wasn't to tender or to tight. He'd run his fingers across it just to make her jump, and Nancy would grumble at him and pray just a little harder that this would all be over soon.

"Why'd you freeze up at the bank?" he asked.

"The guns," Nancy choked as he ran his fingers over the gash again.

"What for?" he insisted.

"They were the same guns those guys used at my school," she sighed, "Or at least they were close, I think."

"Hm."

"Who do you think it was? Just a guess?" Nancy was trying to distract herself.

"Dunno," he shrugged.

"Usually you're pretty all-knowing when it comes to that kind of stuff," she laughed.

He chuckled and turned her around. Nancy froze and grabbed his wrists, but he just looked at her with his dark eyes and chuckled again. He slid the shoulders of her shirt up and buttoned it for her. She let go of his wrists and let her arms lay at her sides.

"Who do you think did it?" he asked.

"Gambol," she said flatly, looking back up at his eyes.

"Gambol?" he asked, Nancy nodded. "What for?"

"Dunno, just feel like blaming him for everything that's happened lately," she shrugged, looking down at the floor.

"Even being kidnapped?" he grinned.

"No, no I blame that on you," she looked back up at him with a small smile.

He chuckled and pulled her closer by the collar of her shirt, "Do ya' now?" he asked.

"Y-yeah," she stuttered.

"And you'd you blame for this?" he asked again.

He gave slight tug on the collar of her shirt and nearly lifted her off her feet. He brushed his lips against hers before looking at her through hooded lids and crushing her lips against his. She drew back instantly and grabbed at his shirt. She opened her mouth to speak, thought otherwise, and leaned forward again for another light kiss. She laced her arms around his neck and knotted her fingers in his greasy hair, bringing her closer to him. She sighed and reached down to grip the collar of his shirt. One of his hands moved down to her shoulder and brushed against her stitches-

"Okay!" Nancy shoved him away and grabbed her knees to catch her breath.

"Sorry... I think," he mumbled.

"No- I... you," she stammered, "I blame that on you!"

"I think the blame's equal there- here. Somewhere," he breathed.

Nancy turned away and attempted to rub the paint from her face, "I can't believe I just did that..." she sighed.

"Me neither," he sighed from across the room.

She turned to him again, her face in her hands, "I have to go."

"Yeah," the Joker sighed.

She tried to speak again and gave up when no words came. She grabbed her cane which leaned against the doorframe and opened the door, the Joker closed it.

"Why'd you stop?" he asked.

"It felt weird," she opened the door, he closed it again.

"What kind of weird?" he asked.

"Why does it matter?" she retorted trying to open the door again.

"Was it a good weird or a bad weird?" He started to grin at her frustration.

"It depends on your point of view." She had stopped trying to open the door and was glaring at him now.

"So it was a good weird?"

"Why are you asking so many questions?"

He stopped and cocked his head to one side at her before shrugging and letting go of the door. Nancy didn't open it yet though, she continued to stare at him as he walked over to the window. She sighed and rubbed the make up from her lips. She could hear Mike and Bruce shouting at each other downstairs, and she finally opened the door. She stopped though and turned back to the Joker.

"Why...?" she started, he looked at her over his shoulder, "Why don't I scare you?"

"Why don't I scare you?" he asked.

She nodded and turned to the door again, listening to Amy scold Mike and Bruce.

"Because," she simply stated.

"Hm," he sighed back.

She sighed in defeat and walked out the door shutting it behind her, and for some odd reason, she regretted leaving at all.

[/|\]

**O.O Okay that was hard. The kiss scene was probably terrible to most of you, but I'm new to this, so gimme a break. Hope you enjoyed it anyway! 3 Thanks for any reviews you happen to leave, if you leave any at all.**

**-Jess**


	27. He Started It

**Okay then, hope you liked the last chapter... maybe. Can't guarantee it... yeah. Anyway, here's chapter... 27? Yes! Thats it! Chapter 27! Here you go...**

/|\

"Are you okay?"

"No!"

"What happened?"

"Nothing!"

"That makes sense."

Nancy slammed the door to the bathroom and turned on the sink tap. She rapped her knuckles impatiently against the sink's edge and waited for the rust colored water to clear. She ran her hands under it and yanked them back in frustration when the freezing water slithered through her already cold fingers. She rubbed her hands against her jeans and splashed the cold water against her face. She gasped a little at the sudden rush of cold and rubbed her lips. The face paint the Joker had smeared there wouldn't come off. She rubbed the sleeve of Mike's shirt against her face and used it to wipe the grime and dust from the mirror above the sink. The paint had started to fade.

"Nancy?" Amy's voice sang through the thin wood of the door. "What're you doing in there?"

Nancy shivered when then water on her face trickled down her neck.

"Nothing," she sighed, the red on her face was gone.

She opened the door and limped down the stairs, Amy gliding down behind her.

"Nothing my ass," she insisted. "You looked all pissed."

"Nothing happened," Nancy ran her cold fingers through her hair and wiped the water from her neck.

Amy grabbed her by the elbow and turned her around, Nancy glared at her. She looked around and headed back up the stairs, Nancy in tow. She walked into their vacant room -Victoria was downstairs with Bruce and the others- and tossed her mask up to her bed. She rubbed her tired blue eyes and ran her hands through her own dark, short hair before turning to Nancy.

"Look," she said, "I like you Nancy, I really do, but if you don't tell me what's up I can't help you."

"There's nothing to help!" Nancy threw her cane to the side and started to pace the room.

Amy shook her head and picked up Nancy's cane. "That," she said, setting the can on Nancy's bed, "is a lie. I can tell. You're pacing and in pain."

"So?" Nancy rubbed angrily at her hip when the stitches pulled.

"So...!" Amy started, she couldn't come up with anything else to say.

"Nothing happened!" Nancy said.

"Okay, now I know something's up," Amy crossed her arms over her chest. "You're denying things, and I'm not even asking about it!"

Nancy sighed and rubbed at her hip again. "I just can't tell you," she said slowly.

"Why?" Amy threw her arms at her. "Look- Nancy. I'm here for you. Mike told me you didn't have... I mean- look. Nancy. Just tell me, or its gonna eat at you, and you know it."

"What'd Mike say?" Nancy demanded, Mike had a big mouth sometimes.

"I'll tell you when you tell me what happened," Amy bargained.

It wasn't worth it. "No deal."

"Fine then," Amy started toward the door, "I'll just ask J."

"No!" Nancy shouted.

Amy stopped and leaned against the doorframe, waiting for Nancy to continue. She ran her hands through her hair again and sat on the desk in one corner of the room, she was tired of walking. But then she stood and walked over to Amy, purpose in her lame step.

"You can't tell anyone about this," Nancy hissed. "No one. Not Mike. Not Bruce. Not anyone downstairs. Not even J, or the Joker or whatever the hell you call 'im. You got it? No one."

Amy nodded and motioned for her to proceed, but Nancy shook her head and moved her away from the door. She cracked it open not even an inch, and peeked down the hall. Not a soul. She let out a breath and closed the door quietly, turning back to Amy.

"I went in... to have J check my stitches," she started...

/|\

Commissioner James Gordon, followed by several lower-level officers, including his friend Robert Webber, made his way up the steps of the Gotham City Bank. He and his men stepped carefully over the bullet casings on the floor marked with bright yellow tags. He nodded to one of his detectives and made his way toward the vault, instantly regretting cutting his communications with the Batman. The vault was clean of the irradiated bills used to track down the mob. Lau had taken care of that. Robert sighed and leaned against the vault door.

"You want me to check the security tapes?" he asked.

Jim nodded and watched him walk away towards the Security room. Robert had been miserable. He didn't sleep, he barely ate, he paced and mumbled, went though dead files. Nancy's friends had been the same way. Carol came to the station everyday, asking about Nancy, checking on Robert. Anthony, too. The poor kids never slept. Jim sighed and tapped his fingers against one of the moneyless stainless steel tables before heading off to find Robert and look over the tapes with him.

It turned out that the Joker had hired some new goons, and oddly enough none of them were shot dead by one another. There were two paler ones that seemed to have dealt with the security system and a taller, lankier kid that stood just about as tall as the Joker. He looked familiar to Robert for some reason. The tall, dark skinned man stood taller and wider than anyone in the whole group, he fired the first rounds and scared the civilians into submission. There was another sickly looking one with long black hair and pasty skin, he or she ran off at one point. Then there was the little shaky one. He looked new to the thieving business as he skittered and stumbled around the others. The Joker would just laugh at him every so often and try to talk to his hostages. The twitchy newbie was wearing a very peculiar mask that struck a chord with Jim.

"That's his mask," he pointed at the screen, "From one of his first robberies. Remember? All the other guys ended up killing each other."

"Why would he give a newbie like that his mask?" Robert hummed, "I mean, the Joker doesn't care about much, but you'd think he'd keep things like that to himself."

Jim nodded and took off his glasses to clean them. Robert went through the other tapes and came up with nothing. The tall lanky one and one of the techies ran off at one point and came back a few minutes later dragging in at least seven giant bags of money. The dark guy took the little one to one side sometime during the heist and said something to him before sending him back on his way. The pasty skinned girl ran off through the front entrance midway through the robbery and came back moments later through the glass doors, driving an inconspicuous white van. The glass that used to be double doors scattered and shattered against the walls and floor. They loaded the cash and piled in the van before speeding back through the gaping hole that used to be an entrance.

"Where do you think they keep Nancy?" Robert asked.

Jim looked at him and furrowed his eyebrows, "I don't know Rob," he said. "If he kills her-"

"Don't," Robert bellowed quietly.

"Listen," Jim reassured, "If the Joker does kill Nancy, we'll know. Hell, we'll probably know beforehand. He's taken something from you- a cop. He knows that. He'll threaten and poke and tease until he gets what he wants."

"He's the Joker," Robert stood from his seat in front of the TV screens, "We can't predict a thing about him."

Jim opened his mouth to say something, then closed it as the truth sank in. But he knew the Joker from his past actions, he had a thing for theatrics, and dammit he was going to use them.

/|\

Nancy had left in a flurry earlier, leaving the Joker alone in his room again. He had shoved his hands in his pockets and leaned his forehead against the glass panes of his window. The city below him was beginning to glow as the sun set behind the skyline. The neon signs buzzed to life a few blocks down and the drunken fiends of Gotham crawled from the festering caves of their homes. He heard shouting down the hall and looked over his shoulder when a door slammed. It was probably Nancy, her confusion had probably turned into frustration by this point. He heard Amy trying to talk to her. Nancy would just shout, "No!" or "Nothing!", and Amy would sigh and mumble.

He heard the door open a moment later when Nancy left whatever room she had entered, then uneven footsteps down the stairs. Up the stairs again, another door slammed shut and more shouting. Amy and Nancy were arguing about something.

The Joker sighed and chuckled a bit as he leaned against the window again, "Nancy, Nancy, Nancy," he sighed, "Now I've gone and screwed everything up, huh?" his breath fogged the glass, "Now you don't know what's, what, hm?"

He wanted her back in his room, her face flushed and red in embarrassment, her eyes all fogged in lusted confusion. He wanted to kiss her again. Just once, to get it out of his system. He sighed and walked over to his bed to sort through the knives in his coat pockets. He just kept thinking about Nancy. The way she stood, the way she breathed, the way she held herself. And now he could think about the way her breath came out in choppy, ragged bursts when he held her, and the way her whole thin form welded itself to him when he kissed her, and the way her lips felt against his, and-

His eyes rolled a little and he forgot about his knives. He knelt next to his bed and folded his arms across the sheets. He ran a hand through his hair and stood back up to stare out his window at the pests that infested the city. His city.

/|\

Amy looked wide eyed at Nancy, who had taken a seat on her bed. Nancy had kissed the Joker. Well, actually, the Joker had kissed her, but the specifics really didn't matter. The fact remained that Nancy had done something that was considered a crime in nearly everyone's eyes.

"Oh my God," Amy finally choked.

Nancy stood in defiance, "He started it! I told you that already!"

"I... you- but you still-!" Amy blabbered.

"I know!" Nancy shouted, "I didn't know what to do! I've never... he- just... ugh!"

She sat and rubbed her eyes. Amy started to pace the room and mumble, "Oh my God," to herself. They stopped and listened as they had been doing every few minutes or so for the past fifteen minutes. They both stiffened when they heard footsteps coming from down the hall. They heard the Joker adjust his coat as he walked down the stairs to the living room. They listened as Victoria cooed something at him and started to relax. Nancy shook her head in disgust.

"I really, really just want to pummel her," she spat.

"You're not the only one," Amy sighed.

They sat for a while, listening to Mike and Bruce yell at each other. Bruce would accuse Mike of using cheat codes and Mike would argue that there were none to use. Victoria would yell at them, the Joker would laugh, and Jason, who sat and stared, did nothing but occasionally sigh and mumble to himself. After about fifteen minutes of silent contemplation, they heard footsteps up the stairs. Nancy stood with her cane and walked across the room when someone banged on the the door.

"Nancy-y-y!" Mike sang, "Would you like to play Halo with me?" His voice ranged from soprano to alto through the sentence, then his voice returned to normal when he said, "Bruce is sick of getting his ass kicked."

Nancy gave a short laugh and walked to the door. Amy got there first.

"Hi Amy!" Mike started, then pulled back his mask to look at her, "You are exceedingly pretty Amy."

Amy's face changed colors and she started to close the door-

"I'll play Mike," Nancy's voice came from behind.

Amy turned to her and tried to protest, but Nancy waved her hand in dismissal and she moved from the door. Mike clapped his glove clad hands a little and followed Nancy down the stairs, his hands hovering over her shoulders just in case. Bruce was sitting on the love seat next to Jason, clearly upset with Mike. Nancy shook her head him and he pulled his mask away form his face to make a weird face at her. She laughed her airy laugh and looked at Victoria who had taken her mask off a few minutes ago. She wasn't too much to look at; she had oversized, yellowish eyes, thin lips, and a sickly, pale complexion.

"Where ya' been Nancy?" the Joker's voice asked.

She turned to him, he was grinning at her. She tucked her tongue behind her lower lip and crossed her eyes at him. He made the face back until she turned around to sit on the coffee table. Mike looked at her and set his mask on his knee once he had sat down. Nancy just stared at the screen and waited for him to stared the game, he was first player.

They played round after round of Halo, Nancy's playing style a bit fiercer than usual. At one point, she actually won a game 25-0. Mike was tired by the end and resorted to hitting her with rockets anytime he saw her. Amy came down some time later and stood behind the couch, refusing to make eye contact with her employer.

"You know what I've been wondering?" Bruce asked out of nowhere.

"Hm?" Nancy sniped Mike from a cliff, he groaned and dropped his head.

"Where's the Batman been at?" Bruce continued.

Everyone in the room stopped and looked him. He shrunk back in his seat and shrugged a little, "Just wonderin'," he mumbled.

Nancy went back to beating Mike, but answered his question, "Since he killed Dent, he's been labeled a public enemy," she hummed. "He's pro'ly layin' low for a while. I would."

"I wouldn't," the Joker said from behind her.

"I would have never guessed," Nancy nearly hissed, "The lowest you've probably ever laid is on your bed."

He just giggled at her and Mike gave them both a look of utter confusion before shrugging and going back to trying to pummel Nancy. He failed.

"Carol called earlier," he said, "while you were upstairs."

Nancy shivered at the thought of Carol knowing what she was doing upstairs, "What'd she say?"

"Rob misses you, everyone does," he chuckled, "It's like she knows you're here."

"Hm..." Nancy mused.

"She says the new DA's a douche bag."

"The people want Harvey Dent: Gotham's White Knight."

"He was a good guy, I got to shake his hand at one of his rally things. Said he couldn't wait to start helping people."

"Never got to meet 'im."

"You woulda liked him. Nice guy..."

Amy stared at Mike. She never really imagined him to be soft spoken around anyone.

"D'ya remember that one time when the cops raided the mob banks?"

"Rob told me about it. Said the vaults were all empty," Nancy nodded, "He said some guy named Lau was helping the mob with all their investments."

"Mm," Mike nodded too.

They were quiet for a while until Mike remembered something that made him chuckle. Nancy looked at him from the corners of her eyes and gave him a questioning look.

"You remember last year? Mid February?" he asked. Nancy nodded a bit and motioned for him to continue, "... When the gym blew up?"

Nancy heard the Joker shift to listen behind her, "Yes, yes in fact I do..."

"That was awesome..." he chuckled, "But terrifying."

"Your gym blew up?" Amy asked.

"Cha!" Mike laughed "They were redoing some piping and hit a gas line. The poor construction guys thought they avoided it, but when they went to weld off some of the old piping... boom."

"That was a very subtle boom," Nancy quipped.

"Shut up, you remember," he shoved her a little and chuckled.

"You woulda liked it_ J_," she exaggerated his little epithet.

"Would I Nancy dear?" he cooed poking her in the back with his shoe. She grimaced and Mike unsuccessfully held in a fit of laughter and ended up spitting all over himself.

"Shut up Mike," Nancy growled then thought again and grinned, "You remember that one time I made you watch 2 Girls 1 Cup?"

Mike gagged next to her and Bruce burst into laughter.

"It's only 'cuz I got you to read fanfiction from that website," he retorted.

Nancy gaped at the TV, directing it towards him, "You know that was Carol's idea. You know it!"

"Yes," Mike giggled, "but you still. Read. It."

"You were the one who gave me twenty-five bucks and a chance to record your reaction to that freakin' video for me to read half of a one-shot. You lose."

"I said I'd give you a fifty bucks to read the whole thing, but you wimped out half way through so I watched the video for your effort and gave you twenty-five bucks for getting half way through. I win."

Nancy was quiet for a second, "I read like three quarters of that thing, you wouldn't have made it a fourth of the way through the first two paragraphs."

"That's 'cuz I'm a dude, I don't read J-" he stopped himself.

"Read what?" Amy and the Joker asked.

"I can't tell you..." he said, Nancy was staring wide-eyed at him.

"You were so close to saying it," she whispered.

"I know. I'm sorry," he whispered back. They both started to laugh nervously.

They dropped the subject and went back to killing each other on the TV.

/|\

At around midnight, Mike bade everyone good night and headed upstairs, Bruce took his place at the controller. He left about half an hour later along with Victoria and Amy. The Joker finally left with Jason and called it a night. Nancy retreated to back to her room not five minutes later when the walls started to creak and moan around her. It was all too eerie for her. She heard Victoria and Amy talking through the door, their words were hushed and angry. She stepped through the threshold and-

"What'd you do?" Victoria hissed at her.

Nancy stopped and looked around and at Amy who looked very feather-ruffled. "I dunno. What?"

Victoria paced forward and grabbed Nancy by the small collar of her tank top, "What. Did you. Do?"

"One: I have no idea what yer' talking about. Two: if you don't let go of me right now, and if this shirt rubs any harder against my stitches, I'm going to have to hurt you," Nancy nodded, an uncomfortable, angry look crossing her face.

"You know exactly what I'm talkin' about," Victoria hissed again. "Whad' you do with him?" she jabbed a finger in the direction of the Joker's desolate room. Nancy frowned and looked Victoria.

"Let go," she said slowly.

Victoria shoved her back against the door and flexed her hands into fists. Nancy licked her lips and popped her back, looking up at Amy who sat quiet in the tense dark, then back at Victoria.

"It's gonna hurt," she whispered dangerously, "and it's gonna hurt a lot, but it'll be quick."

Victoria swung her pasty-skinned fist and hit the door when Nancy ducked and tackled her at the waist. They hit the floor at Amy's feet and she jumped up on the bed as best she could without hitting her head. Nancy pinned Victoria to the wood floor with one hand and punched her in the nose with the other. She was shoved off and across the room when Victoria stood and trudged towards her, face a mess with blood. She kicked Nancy in the gut and sent her flying threw the barely open door. She go to her feet and punched Victoria in the throat when she neared. She doubled over and Nancy grabbed a fist full of hair to throw her down the hall with.

Mike, Bruce and Jason nearly fell out of their room to see what was going on only to be pushed back in by Victoria when she used their door to steady herself. She grabbed at her throat and started to gasp for breath. Nancy waited for her down the hall. She stumbled back towards her and managed to make contact with her fist against Nancy's head in her near unconscious state. Mike and the others cursed and fell over each other to get back down the hall. Amy streaked out of the room and stopped when Victoria's fist threatened to hit her in the chest.

Nancy stood again and kicked Victoria in between the legs. She grabbed herself and crumpled to the floor. Mike and Bruce were making a ruckus not four feet away while Jason just motioned for his sister to get out of the way. She slithered her way past the two brawling broads and grabbed her brother's shoulder. She was wide-eyed and paler than usual.

Victoria stumbled to her feet and lunged forward and grabbed at Nancy's hair, she got a fist to the face. Nancy fell to the floor when Victoria grabbed her ankles and yanked. She nearly threw up when her stitches tugged and torn at her skin. Victoria started to crawl on her and got a punch to the chest. She fell over to grab at her sternum and Nancy rolled away. Then she stopped and looked, panting, at the very nice pair of shoes standing in front of her. She looked up at the Joker and realized just how quiet the hall had become. Victoria, apparently not caring for her employers presence, stood, grabbed Nancy's legs and attempted to pull her down the hall. The Joker looked up and nodded at Bruce.

Victoria let go of Nancy. She stood and stared at the floor, not wanting to meet his eyes before turning and lunging back at Victoria. The Joker grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her back, another hand on her shoulder. Victoria stood across from her, her arms pinned behind her by Bruce. Mike looked terrified, Amy, too, who looked at Victoria in distain. Jason's jaw was clenched and his shoulders were tensed. Nancy evened her breath and squirmed away from the Joker, he held his grip.

"I'm done," she breathed.

His hands slid away from her wrist and shoulder and she rubbed her eyes. Her head hurt again. The Joker must have nodded again at Bruce because Victoria slipped from his gripped and wiped the blood from her face.

"Everyone finished?" the Joker asked calmly.

Nancy nodded. Victoria continued to scowl.

"Okay then," he said again, "Ladies, lets head off to bed."

Nancy nodded and headed toward her room.

Then Victoria did something stupid. Something so extremely stupid that it would make even the stupidest of people say, "That was really damn stupid." She took two, long steps towards Nancy, drew back her fist, and, before anyone could do anything about it, she punched Nancy square in the stitches.

There was noise then, lots of it as Nancy's head spun with pain, most of it being the buzzing in her ears as she turned to Victoria again. She was laughing, but afraid as she looked over her shoulder. Nancy took advantage of her inattentive state, reached over, grabbed another fist full of hair, and brought Victoria's face down to collide with her knee.

Victoria stumbled back against the opposite wall, clenching at what was left of her nose and slid down to the floor, panting and howling in pain. Nancy groped at air, the wall behind her, as she slid against the wood paneled wall to the rough wooden floor. She glanced around for a moment as the darkness slid over her view. She shook her head and gripped at her shoulder, pulling it back up to her eyes to check for blood. There was blood all right. Lots of it. Victoria, some how or another, had managed to tear a few of her stitches with her punch. Nancy gagged and swallowed the bile that threatened to rise in her throat. Mike knelt next to her and yelled at Bruce to get a towel.

Maybe that's what he said, she thought, Everything's really fuzzy, and buzzy and junk. Where'd Happy-Pants run off to?

"Happy-Pants," being the Joker, had walked over to Victoria. He wasn't happy with her. Not. One. Bit. He grabbed her by the hair and drug her down the hall, kicking and screaming, into the spare room that was used for storage. He tossed her inside and watched her scramble around on the floor, gripping at her bloodied nose and blackened eye. She gazed up at him in terror as he glowered at her. She crept closer toward the door and had it slammed in her face. She heard a click from outside as the Joker locked it. He would save her for later.

Nancy on the other hand, was still bleeding, and Mike was still panicking even as Bruce tried to shake out a dirty, disgusting towel he had reluctantly found in one of the bathrooms. It wasn't doing anything really except making Amy sneeze.

"Dammit!" Mike cried, "She's bleeding!"

"Shut up Mike! I know!" Bruce shouted back at him. Mike continued to whimper.

"Shud' up Mike," Nancy mumbled.

Mike fluttered around nervously as the Joker motioned for Jason. Amy had run back into the girl's room to try and find something clean to hold on Nancy's shoulder. Jason had to nearly hop over Mike to get around to talk to the Joker.

"Yes'ir?" he panted. He wasn't comfortable with the sight of blood.

"I need you to be a doctor fer' me pal," the Joker explained.

Jason was confused, "W-what?"

"Run to the hospital and grab me some stitches, lidocaine, and anesthesia," he said, "Can ya' do that?"

Jason nodded quickly, turned, hopped over Mike again, ran down the stairs and out to the van. Amy yelled at him, Bruce stumbled out of the way, and Mike continued to flutter around Nancy who, for some odd reason, just kept shaking her head at them all.

'Least she's conscious, the Joker thought to himself.

He strode over and, while Mike wasn't looking, scooped her off the floor and down the hall to his room. She made little protest except the small mumble of "No," and an agitated sigh. When Mike turned back around, his panic furthered and became almost comical as he hopped to his feet and started shaking Bruce.

"Where'd she go!?" he shouted in desperation.

"Chill out man!" Bruce grabbed him by the shoulders and hoisted him off the ground. Mike still flailed nervously.

"Where'd she go?" Mike continued to whimper.

"J has her," Bruce set Mike on his feet again.

"Oh..." Mike mused.

Bruce shook his head at him and patted Amy on the shoulder, nearly knocking her to the floor.

"Go back to bed Amy," he said, "Nancy's with J. She's fine."

"Oh no," Amy gasped.

"What?"

"Nothing!" Amy ran back into her room, closed the door and locked it.

She started to flutter around nervously, muttering "Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh my God," over and over again to herself.

/|\

Nancy was not happy. The Joker had set her on his bed and was currently examining what was left of her stitches. Examining them, however, did mean having him loom over her, knelt on the bed between her legs. Her unhappiness was very apparent. The Joker giggled at her discomfort in their position.

"You seem very aggravated by this whole -uh- situation Nancy," he chuckled quietly to her.

"Shud' up," she mumbled.

He just giggled against her shoulder and pulled the strap of her tank top away from her stitches.

"I'm pretty surprised you're not pissed that I'm bleeding all over your sheets," Nancy flushed.

He opened his mouth to say something witty and crude, decided against it, and closed it again. The last thing he needed was for Nancy to be angry at him while she was bleeding everywhere. Not that she wasn't already angry enough as it was. He had a very distinct feeling that she was very uncomfortable with him being on top of her like this. He didn't mind one bit. He, in fact, was very happy with the current situation.

"How're you gonna stitch me up? I'm not stayin' like this," Nancy hummed under her breath.

"Aw, why not?" the Joker giggled back. She glared at him, he just smiled and said, "I sent Techie to the hospital. He's really good at that whole sneaky spy stuff."

"Just sounds like Hannibal to me," Nancy turned her head and glared at the wall.

The Joker shrugged and moved his hands to cradle the side of her face. She stiffened and shifted uncomfortably. He just chuckled darkly at her and watched her wince. Across the room, the Joker's junky excuse of a cell phone started to buzz in his coat pocket. He had tossed it on the dresser when he had gone off to bed and now he wore his vest and shirt, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He sighed and got up from the bed, not being able to help but giggle when he heard Nancy sigh in relief.

"What?" he asked Jason on the other line.

"You need wrappings too?" Jason asked nervously, every hint of self-absorbed narcissism absent from his tone.

The Joker took a quick look back at Nancy, she was looking gloomily out the window.

"Nah," he said, "Just somethin' clean. Towel 're something. Don't need anything getting infected."

"Got it," Jason checked the items off his mental check list, "Be back in about fifteen."

"Many gracious "thank you's" Techie, hurry up. She won't last that long."

They hung up on each other and the Joker turned back to Nancy. He stopped, she wasn't looking at him, not anticipating his return at all. She was, in fact, still staring out the window, a fog over her eyes. Not an unhealthy one, just a mist that told him she was off in her own world again. She seemed to do that a lot, wander off in her own mind. Her shoulder had clotted a bit, but the stitches still needed replacing.

She was so quiet, so wonderful to look at even in her state. Beaten and bloody, soon to be bruised, so quiet and calm. He knew what most people's reactions would be: screaming, crying, begging for life. But not Nancy, he knew she would stand defiant before him, not a quiver in her step besides the obvious scarring on her hip. He leaned back against the dresser and just looked at her.

It was one of his favorite pastimes, just sitting and watching her. She was interesting to him. Sarcastic, yet wise and caring in a way only the unloved could be to the loved. He knew, that locked away in her pretty little head somewhere was something simmering and boiling, something that nearly drover her insane on a daily basis, and he doubted kissing her that afternoon had helped. Or maybe it had, he couldn't be quite sure. But what he did know is that Nancy Webber wasn't the kind of girl you could simply accuse of being soft, or stupid, or unknowing of real pain. Real physical, real psychological pain. She felt it, all the time he knew. And it bothered him to know she was dying a little on the inside.

His main concern at the moment, however, was making sure she didn't actually die, and as she looked back at him from the corners of her eyes, he just hoped Jason would hurry his emo ass up.

/|\

Jason made it back when he said he would, and now sat in the living room behind Bruce and Mike on the couch. They, of course, were playing Halo.

"So, Jason," Mike mumbled, "What'd you do?"

"Went to the hospital," Jason replied quietly. "Boss wanted some stuff fer Nancy."

Bruce looked back at him over his shoulder, "Wha's a matter with you?"

"Yeah," Mike looked back at him too. "You're all... subdued."

"The Joker intimidates me," Jason confessed. "He's a terrifying individual."

Bruce and Mike nodded at him and went back to playing Halo. After the fight, neither of them felt like going back to sleep. Jason was just afraid to go back upstairs. Amy had walked back into the girl's room, but other than that she was quite awake. Pacing, wringing her hands, mumbling to herself like a father in the waiting room of a hospital, hoping for news of his children. At one point she actually thought about going next door to see Victoria. Not in pity of course. She had something else in mind. Something along the lines of giving her a taste of her own medicine. Nancy, however, had already done a lovely job of that.

She decided, instead, to go downstairs. The guys were down there, playing X-Box. Mindless Sci-fi violence had a tendency of putting her thoughts at ease. In the hall, she heard Victoria clawing at the door to the spare room. Rattling the handle, whispering for help, bumping against it. It was no use. She was locked in there good and tight. Downstairs, she could hear Mike and Bruce whispering insults to each other over the din of the game. Jason's voice would perk through the noise every so often; giving hints, telling them to go one way or the other. Amy smiled and trotted down the steps, her sock clad feet making not but a soft swish against the old wood stairs in her decent.

Jason turned to her and smiled a bit. It didn't seem to fit his face, he hadn't smiled in a while if Amy could remember correctly. She smiled back, of course, and gave Mike an "air-five" when he offered. Bruce threw her a peace sign and went back to playing. She sat quietly next to her brother and clasped her hands against her knees. He smiled lightly at her again and she gave him an odd look before smiling back.

"How's Nancy?" she asked.

"Dunno," Jason shrugged, "J took the stuff and shut the door."

"Mm," Amy droned, she was nervous for her.

"Why?" Jason asked.

"Jus' wondering," she shrugged at him.

"Where's Victoria?" Mike inquired.

There was silence for a moment as they all processed the information.

"In the storage room," Jason said.

"I think a better question is 'What's J gonna do to 'er?'" Amy casted in.

Silence. They knew the answer. Well, one of the many possible answers. Death, torture, both. The possibilities that branched off were disturbing. Quick and painless? Slow and painful? Quick and painful? The question darkened the mood and the room dulled down, the TV's picture gave a shimmer. They stopped their thoughts and listened to the slow footsteps from upstairs.

"I'm almost scared for her," Amy gazed at the ceiling.

"Not me," Mike whispered.

Bruce nodded in agreement and fiddled with his controller, Mike had paused the game in case the conversation continued. Jason nodded a bit too and shifted uncomfortably on the couch. They all jumped a bit when Victoria started banging on the door upstairs, she wanted out of her room. Amy let out a sigh and slumped farther down in her seat. She was tired and she knew everyone else was, too. It was about two in the morning now, and not one of them had gotten a wink of sleep. No one was brave enough to go upstairs either. The Joker was up there, their boss, their employer. He terrified them.

Mike thought about it for a second and came to the conclusion that Nancy was probably one of the only people in Gotham that the Joker didn't petrify. Sure, she was intimidated by him, but who wasn't right? He was a scary guy; murder, assault, robbery, torture. The prospect of him suddenly losing it on one of them was horribly high. It scared them.

Even Bruce, who was bigger, taller, and most likely stronger than anyone in the house, was scared of the Joker. He was grimy and grotesque in Bruce's eyes. Not to the point that it disgusted him, but to the point it frightened him. To the point that he did all he could to keep on his boss's good side.

"What do you think he'll do to her?" Mike asked nervously.

No one answered even know they knew the options. None of them were pretty.

/|\

Nancy wasn't happy. The Joker had a needle. A syringe to be exact. Oh yes, she knew he would fix her stitches up nice and pretty, but that did mean being unconscious in his room. The thought made her nervous, but not in the way she imagined 'nervous' to be. The butterflies in her stomach turned to bees and stung at her insides as she watched him fiddle with syringes and needles and thread. She didn't dare look at her shoulder. The sight of blood made her queazy, she could only imagine what the sight of her own blood would do to her stomach. The Joker threw a towel over his shoulder and flicked at a syringe filled with anesthesia as he made his way over to the bedside.

"Now I needja to stay re-e-ally still for me doll," he told her.

"Don't call me doll," she said.

"Hold still," he said again.

Nancy held still and looked out the window. She did not like needles, and nothing would change her idea in the matter.

"Does someone have needle-phobia?" he giggled next to her.

"Shut up and fix me," Nancy growled as the needle pressed against her skin.

"Okey-dokey Nancy, you just do your part and sleep," he defended.

Nancy continued to grumble irritably until her vision blurred and blackness slid over her eyes. Then the Joker went to work. He tossed the syringe aside and reached for another filled with lidocaine. He dipped it in the skin around her stitches, not being able to help but smile at the thought of being able to this without Nancy yelling at him. Although he also couldn't help but wish she was yelling. Well, screaming and squirming around in pleasure would have been more like it, but it would have worked for him either way.

Her breathing evened after a moment and he pulled back the strap of her tank top to pull the useless stitches from her shoulder, one by one. After a few minutes of delicate pulling and tugging he stopped and listened to Victoria scramble around in the next room and bang on the door. He giggled and went back to removing stitches and swiping blood away with the towel on his shoulder. Downstairs he could hear his other cronies whispering quietly to each other. He turned and walked to his dresser to fetch the new needle and thread. He bent over Nancy's thin, tired looking figure and stopped. She was asleep in his room.

"Oh the things I could do right now," he giggled to himself.

He wouldn't though. He couldn't. Not to her. And he didn't know why. It was like he needed her permission to touch her or something. He sighed at the thought and bent over her again to work on her shoulder. He wiped the blood away with the towel when it slithered down to his pillow. He snaked the needle through the torn skin again and tugged at the end when he was finished. He snipped off the ends and wiped what little blood was left on her shoulder. Giving his handiwork one last glance he wiped the blood from his hands and tossed the towel at his dresser. The rest of the stuff he used was gathered and stuffed in an empty drawer in his desk.

The Joker gave Nancy a look and reached to touch her face. He licked his lips and knelt down next to her.

"What'd you do if I kissed you again Nancy?" he asked her, "'Cause I wanna. You kiss so nice. I shouldn't though. I know it'd mess you up even more if I did. I wanna though. I really do."

He licked his lips again and ran his thumb over her lips. They were chapped, but oh so soft against his fingers as he ran them down her face. It bothered him to see her like this, quiet and unmoving. He stood and rubbed at his eyes, his makeup smeared. He sighed and grabbed his coat as he walked out the door to have a little chat with Victoria.

/|\

Victoria was not doing well. He nose hadn't stopped bleeding, her lip was split, she could feel bruises forming, and her head hurt. On top of all of that, she heard footsteps. The slow trudging footsteps of her boss as he made his way down the hall. He adjusted his coat outside the door and the knob turned. Victoria skittered to her feet and retreated to the other side of the room. She slid down in a corner and grabbed a bag of freshly stolen cash to hide herself. The door creaked open...

"Vicky..." the Joker's voice cooed dangerously.

The malice in his tone dripped from his lips as he closed the door behind him. He took two, trudging steps toward the shivering bag of money before grabbing it and throwing it across the room. It made a heavy thudding noise when it hit the wall. Victoria whimpered in despair and started to crawl backwards along the wall behind her. The Joker followed her slowly with his eyes until she bumped against the next wall. He took another two steps and grabbed her by the throat. She yelped and gripped at his wrists.

"See Vicky, now you've gone and tried to break my new play thing," he said to her.

"I-I-I-I'm s-s-sorry," she whimpered, tears streaming down her face.

"Now, now Vicky, no need to cry," he reassured. "I'm not gonna hurt you..."

R-r-r-really?" Victoria smiled, the tears still running across her pasty face.

"Yeah!" he whispered. "You wanna know why? Hm? 'Cause I fixed up my new little toy and that's put me in a good mood a' sorts."

Victoria shivered and tried not to frown, "S-s-s-o-"

"S-s-s-o-ah... I'm gonna let you off with a nice little warning Vicky," he said. "But if you ever..." his tongue slipped clumsily across his scars, "ever try and break my little toy again..."

"You'll k-k-kill me?" she whimpered.

"You're not as stupid as ya' look, stupid," he nodded.

He dropped her and she gasped for breath. She looked up in time to be kicked in the stomach. Victoria hit the floor and writhed in pain, clutching at her gut. A fresh string of tears winded down her cheeks and she turned to face the wall as the Joker walked out the door and slammed it shut.

[/|\]

**Okay, so that only took me forever to write. I hope everyone liked it yadda, yadda, yadda. R&R and all that noise. **

**I hope everyone got as much satisfaction in seeing Victoria have her ass handed to her by two people as I did. Because I loved writing it, even though my writings a little rough when it comes to fight scenes. **

**-Jessica**


	28. There Is No Money

**Hi there. I hope you enjoyed the last chapter... even though the end was rushed and the whole chapter took about a month to write with all that school crap jumbled up in there and... Anyway! Beyond that, I hope you enjoyed it, and I hope you enjoy this chapter too... **

/|\

Maroni was expecting company. And although his domain was quiet and smelled of fresh concrete, he hoped that the newly redeemed Gambol would appreciate what he had to offer: information on the Joker. Or it was what he _thought_ might have been information on the Joker. Maroni had hired several computer junkies, nerds, and techies to hack through police files, websites, wanted lists, and possible information scandals for information on the maniac. The data came flooding in like God's rain, and soon his new office, complete with wheelchair ramp, was filled with papers, reports, and charts.

Gambol, of course, would be paying out the nose for all of it, just for a chance to get even with the Joker. And though it surprised him that Gambol was still among the living, Maroni had no problem hanging around for a few more hours in front of his newly purchased plasma-screen HD-TV waiting for him to arrive.

And boy did he arrive. Flanked out of the elevator by two armed guards, Gambol strode in like a man who had just won the lottery. Not stumbling and stupidly happy, but straight, tall, and proud. He held a cane in his right hand and it clicked pleasantly against the hardwood floors of Maroni's new pad. The left side of his face, however, did not seem so pleasant. Gambol's cheek was scarred half to hell, and back. The discolored scar tissue was jagged and rough, but it seemed well taken care of next to what the Joker's looked like.

"I see you've made some new renovations," Gambol said just as pleasantly as his cane.

"Had to compensate for the fact that I can no longer _walk_," Maroni nodded his head.

He gave the toggle on his wheelchair a turn and it turned to face Gambol.

"What a shame," Gambol smiled casually.

"What a shame indeed," Maroni agreed making his way down the concrete ramp,. "You'll excuse me if I don't shake hands. I can't move this side of my body."

"Of course. With the left then?" Gambol offered Maroni his hand. "A bit less business like, but -uh- _compensating _for the current situation, I doubt you'll mind."

"Of course not," Maroni replied casually, grabbing Gambol's hand with his own.

They shook and Maroni turned to a large computer station behind him. Two men in suits stood on either side of the huge station, with three or four other chaps seated before it, bringing up windows and charts and such. Gambol took a quick look around the room which was quite dark save the TV and computer screens. The walls were concrete, but somehow managed to hold up a few magnificent paintings; the wooden floor was slathered in a dark finish and was shiny and polished; the main floor, not including the elevator walkway, was raised slightly above the rest of the floor; and instead of having stairs, Maroni had installed concrete ramps that were still dark and slightly moist to the touch; over in one corner was a bar with stainless steel countertops and darkly finished wood shelves; on a seperate island of its own was what seemed to be something of a living area, complete with leather couches, stylish side tables and, of course, the plasma-screen TV that was perched on a wide, dark entertainment center.

"This," Maroni motioned at the computers, "is where the magic happens."

"I can see that," Gambol nodded, the scar on his face giving his cheek a little tug.

"Whadaya got for me boys?" Maroni asked the techies as they stared at the screen.

"A couple police leads," the first one said.

"Few fan sites," said the second.

Gambol huffed and winced when his scar tugged again, but the boys continued.

"Dead ends, possible suspects, wannabes..." the third rattled on.

"And a buncha stuff on Nancy Webber," the fourth one said.

"Who?" Gambol asked, taking a step forward.

"Nancy Alexis Webber, age seventeen, date of birth is February 3, '91, 5'9", blonde hair, green eyes-"

"What else about her besides appearance?" Maroni interrupted.

"Says here she was kidnapped from MCU right after the Joker made his break about two weeks ago," the second techie said. "Reports say that he knocked the two officers _on_ duty, _out_ of consciousness-" he giggled at his own lame joke, then continued after clearing his throat, "The officers were Police Commissioner James Gordon and Detective Robert Webber, Nancy Webber's uncle."

Gambol rubbed his chin thoughtfully and smiled. Maroni nodded proudly at his boys and turned to wheel down the ramp and up another towards the bar. Gambol's smile widened and he turned on his heel to follow his new business partner.

The Chechen, Maroni's old partner in crime, didn't have the same luck with the Joker as Gambol did. When the Joker had mentioned having the Russian fed to his own dogs, it wasn't merely a suggestion, it was an order. After that he burned Lau alive and blew up a hospital, so it turned out that the Joker was "as crazy as he looked," unlike what the Chechen had thought.

The man behind the bar scowled at Gambol until Maroni shook his head at him. His face loosened and eventually turned into a faint, business like smile as the two men drew closer to the bar.

"What can I getcha boss?" he asked.

"Dry martini," Maroni said.

"And you?" the barman nodded at Gambol.

"Heineken," Gambol said.

The barman nodded and reached down below the counter. He pulled out Gambol's Heineken, uncapped it and handed it to him. He reached down again and pulled up a mixer and all the fixings for Maroni's martini.

"So," Gambol started, "how much?"

"One mil., for starters, and twenty-five thousand for everyt'ing after that," Maroni offered.

Gambol contemplated for a moment, then nodded his head slowly, "Yes, yes that sounds good."

"Alright 'den, it'sah deal," Maroni smiled cockily.

"That it is," Gambol held out his left hand for Maroni.

They shook and put down their drinks. Maroni led Gambol and his men to his office to collect the information and papers. Gambol stood in the doorway and watched his men gather papers and place them carefully in large suitcases.

"So where's the money?" Maroni asked.

Gambol's breath hissed through his teeth as he turned and gave Maroni a disappointed look.

"You see the thing about that is," Gambol reached for his belt and pulled out a revolver, "There is no money."

Maroni's eyes widened and he fiddled frantically with the controls of his wheelchair. Gambol cocked the gun, pointed it at Maroni's forehead and smiled before pulling the trigger.

/|\

Twenty minutes later, Gambol's men had packed up the money, shot the bartender, restrained the techies, and brought them upstairs (they were in the basement) and out to the cars. They would be useful later. Gambol handed his gun to one of his guards and made his way back to the elevator. On the ground floor, the rest of Gambol's men had taken care of any guards Maroni had left and stood silent and stoic above the bodies of their victims. He nodded to them and they filed out the double doors to the gleaming Cadillac Escalades waiting outside.

Gambol looked up at the sky as gray, flimsy clouds began to overpower the sun. It would be raining soon. A roll of thunder confirmed his assumption and he slid into his car before the sky could pelt him with cold precipitation. The techies were loaded into another car, along with the papers and some of Maroni's computer equipment.

Gambol started to finger the diamond studded hilt of his cane thoughtfully as the SUVs hummed down the street. He had a thought then, a wonderful little evil thought that just might lighten his mood even more.

"Ricky," he told the driver, "turn here. We're going to the MCU."

"Sir?" Ricky asked.

"Just do it, son," Gambol smiled.

Ricky shrugged and turned down the street. Gambol pulled out his phone to tell the other driver where they were going and to just keep on truckin'. Gambol hung up as Ricky pulled the car up to the MCU and opened the door for him. He told him to stay in the car, but for his two armed gunman to come in with him, just in case. He marched up the small set of stairs that led to the doorway and straight up to the front desk.

"How can I help-" the receptionist stopped and stared.

"Is Robert Webber in? I'd like to speak with him," Gambol said airily.

The woman at the desk sputtered and swept off to find Robert. He came through the door moments later looking very tired and slightly flustered. He stopped and looked at Gambol, the expression on his face morphing from surprise to rage.

"What do _you _want Gambol?" he bellowed.

"I'd like to propose something," Gambol offered kindly.

"What?" Robert spat.

"Nancy is your niece, correct?"

"Hm."

"I'll take "hm" as a yes and go on. You see, I have a source. A few sources actually, that would be more than happy to help find Nancy."

"Whadaya mean "sources"?"

"People on the _inside _just waiting for a chance to -uh- help..."

"How much?"

Gambol looked confused and a little hurt, "Why, I don't know what you mean Robert. This is all _complementary_, of course."

"Yeah right..." Robert mused.

"You think about it," Gambol reached into his jacket and pulled out a card. "Here's my number. When you feel like saying yes, or no, just call."

Gambol handed Robert the card and winked at the receptionist as he turned and made his way out to the car. Once inside, he pulled out his phone again to tell the boys he was heading home. The car pulled from the driveway and out onto the street.

Yes, Gambol would leave Robert to brood over his suggestion. Family, he knew, would do nearly anything to save other family, that included making dirty deals with the mob.

"And now I play the waiting game," Gambol grinned.

/|\

"Mikey!" the Joker shouted as he hopped down the stairs.

Mike scurried to his feet and dropped his controller, "B-boss?"

"I need ya' to go in the ol' kitchen there and find me some bottles. Ones that aren't broken, preferably," the Joker grinned. "And techie!" Amy and Jason looked up, "Okay male techie." Amy turned back around and slouched a bit.

"Yes sir," Jason said.

"Needja to go back upstairs for me and grab a big bag 'a money from the bank," the Joker requested. "I have a feeling that if I go back up there to see ole' Vicky lyin' on the floor I'll hafta put 'er out of 'er misery."

"Yes sir," Jason nodded and jumped over the couch to make his way upstairs.

Mike came in a moment later with an open crate of jangling glass bottles. He set them on the coffee table next to Bruce and looked back up at his boss.

"This enough J?" he smiled hopefully.

"Check 'em," the Joker said, "Don't wan' 'em poppin' when when we set 'em on fire now do we?"

"Fire?" Mike asked.

The Joker almost answered his question but was interrupted when Jason came thumping down the stairs with a very large bag of money hanging over his shoulder. He looked a bit paler that usual and when he opened his mouth to speak he had to close it again to wet his lips.

"W-where do ya' want it sir?" he asked politely.

The Joker told him to start putting the money in the bottles, then he told Amy to run back into the kitchen to look for lighter fluid, matches, and lighters.

"We're gonna burn the money?" Mike asked.

"Yeah-huh," the Joker nodded.

"Where?" Amy asked as she set down the things she was told to fetch.

"Lotsa places!" the Joker smiled.

"Good enough for me," Mike mumbled.

He unzipped the giant duffle bag of money as soon as Jason set it on the floor and started pulling out bills. Jason knelt next to the box of bottles and started shoving the fifties and the hundreds in the bottles as Mike passed them along. Amy watched for a moment then decided to fiddle with the lighter for a while.

"I wish Nancy was here," Mike pouted. "She loves fire. You remember that old show Boom! that used to air on Spike? Nancy loved that show."

Bruce shook his head at him and turned off the X-Box to help cram the money in the bottles. The Joker just leaned against the couch and twirled one of his knives through his fingers until it bored him and he reached around Amy to grab the bottle of lighter fluid. He gave it a good shake to make sure there was anything left in the somewhat ancient bottle and grinned when something inside started sloshing around.

"Once yer' done with that," he said, "Start loadin' the bottles in the van. We're gonna be out for a while."

"Who'll watch Nancy?" Mike trembled. He knew Victoria would want to take another swipe at his friend.

"Tiny over here," he jabbed a thumb at Bruce.

"I gotta stay here while you guys go _harass _other people?" Bruce gawked.

"Yep."

"It's 'cause I'm black in'it?"

Mike started laughing.

"No," the Joker said, "It's because your bigger and stronger than Vicky upstairs. So, if she feels like pullin' somethin' else, you can rip 'er head off!"

The room went quiet for a moment. Then Bruce started to nod his head, and a smile found its way on his face.

"I like it," he grinned.

"Good," the Joker grinned back, "Now, Mikey- you and Techie Two over here get that stuff out to the van, and be careful, the last thing we need is broken glass I can use to peel your faces off with!"

Mike and Jason gulped and nodded, set the bottles lightly back in the crate before picking them up and heading out to the van.

"And Techie One," the Joker looked at Amy, "I hope you know a little bit about pyrotechnics."

Amy nodded a bit nervously and skittered out to the van with her fire-stuffs.

"Bruce, go upstairs. Now," the Joker demanded.

Bruce nodded and hurried up the stairs.

/|\

Amy sat in the back of the van on the floor, filling the money-filled bottles with lighter fluid and setting them aside until they pulled up to a house. There, she'd hand them to Mike who would grab a lighter, walk very quietly up to the door step of the house they had stopped at, light the money on fire, bang on the door, and run. Jason drove while the Joker monitored their progress.

"Whose houses are these boss?" Mike asked at one point.

"Cops, lawyers," the Joker named off a few, "The police commissioner."

Mike gave him a wide eyed look for a moment before continuing to stare out the window, the eye holes in his mask making it a bit harder to make out shapes and light. Amy had her mask pulled off to one side, since she was in the back, she didn't have as much to worry about. Jason kept quiet and focused, the last thing he wanted was to piss off his boss.

They stopped in front of another building, this one an apartment. Mike stared at it for a moment and realized where they were. Amy handed him a bottle and a lighter. He took them limply in his hands and make a quiet decent up the fire escape. He stopped a few floors up, set the bottle down, lit it on fire, banged on the front door, and booked it down the stairs away from Jim Gordon's apartment.

When he got back inside he said, "I can't believe I just did that."

"Just keep'm comin' kid," the Joker giggled.

Mike nodded and rubbed his hands together nervously, he had a very large amount of respect set aside in his mind for Jim Gordon. Now he had just lit a bottle full of money and lighter fluid on fire in front of his house. Mike sighed and leaned his head against the window. It was going to be a long night.

/|\

Jim heard the banging and stood from his dining room table. His wife, who sat across from him, stood too and took a few cautious steps towards her children's bedrooms. Jim had finally gotten a few hours off from work and had expected to take some of that time and spend it with his family. Instead, he spent it all with his wife, not that he minded. He had gotten home at around midnight and was sitting in his kitchen talking to her when someone had started banging at his front door.

His wife, Barbara, took a few more steps towards the bedrooms.

"Go on and check on 'em," Jim said.

Barbara nodded a little and strode off to check on her children. Jim reached for the gun at his hip and opened the door. He leaped back when the flaming bottle of money on his front step cracked and popped at him. He walked back onto the kitchen and reached into the cabinet below the sink and extracted a fire extinguisher. He doused the flames with the flame retardant substance inside and stepped back to set the extinguisher aside. Barbara came in a moment later, reassured about her children, and gasped when Jim set a scorched beer bottle on the table, his hand protected by a kitchen rag.

"Jim," Barbara said.

Jim shook his head and pulled out his cell phone. He called every officer and detective from the MCU and counted how many had burning bottles on their stoop.

"Is it him?" Barbara asked in terror.

Jim nodded, "It's him."

Barbara walked back into her children's rooms and sat on their beds. Jim stood in the kitchen and stared at the bottle, his hands in his pockets. He went and told Barbara that he was going back to work, he had evidence. He told her to stay inside and not answer the door. Barbara nodded and patted her son's head. Jim went back into the kitchen, grabbed another cup of coffee, put the bottle in a bag, and headed out the door to his car.

/|\

The Joker's night shift stumbled tiredly out of their van at about two in the morning and trudged into the house in the same manner. Bruce was sitting on the couch, an X-Box controller held lazily in his hand, and Victoria sat in the love seat, curled up in the fetal position. Mike immediately trudged over to the couch and sat next to Bruce. Amy and Jason headed upstairs, and Victoria shifted around on the love seat.

"Nancy's still asleep boss," Bruce mumbled, his eyelids starting to droop.

"You should go to bed dude," Mike said, his eyelids performing the same feat.

The Joker shook his head at them and turned to go upstairs. He flashed a look at Victoria who shriveled away at his glance. In his room, Nancy was still in bed, rolled over to one side, her head in her hands. He took off his coat and threw it on the dresser, took the chair from his desk and sat it next to the bed. He wanted to be there when she woke up.

About three hours later, she did just that. Her eyes cracked open and she turned over to face the wall behind her.

"Ah-ah-ah!" the Joker grabbed her by the waist and turned her over.

Nancy, when grabbed, curled into a little ball and let out the faintest of giggles. The Joker let go and gave her a confused look. Nancy sat stark upright and wrapped her arms around her waist. The Joker grinned.

"Nancy? Are you ticklish?" he asked, the grin on his face widening.

"No." Nancy's eyes had widened to the size of dinner plates by this point.

The Joker giggled and stowed the valuable information away to be used, evilly, later.

"You all rested gorgeous?" he asked

"Sort of, being unconscious and asleep are two different things," Nancy mumbled, "And don't call me gorgeous."

"Whatever doll," he shrugged, Nancy scowled at him. "Listen, we're gonna go hold up Wal-Mart day after tomorrow-"

"Wal-Mart?" Nancy asked.

"Yes," the Joker nodded slowly and spoke to her as if she were a child. "Wal-Mart's got everything! And plus there's always a kajillion people there and I thought it'd be fun to scare 'em shitless."

Nancy rubbed her eyes in irritation, "And I'm coming along for the ride, am I?"

"Of course," the Joker ruffled her hair a bit and continued. "It wouldn't be a party without you Nancy dear."

"I'm gonna get some more shut eye," Nancy stood up from the bed and limped toward the door.

"What? My bed not comfy enough?" the Joker asked in mocked insult.

"No, its just that the possibility of getting raped in here is much higher than any other room in the whole house," Nancy grinned, then, realizing what she had just said, frowned.

The Joker started laughing behind her and continued to do so until she was fast asleep and off in her own world.

[/|\]

**Alright, like most chapters, this one took forever to write and publish. Sorry for the wait, school and sports and homework all get in the way. Anyhow, hope you enjoyed it blah-blahblah-blahblah. Thanks to everyone (except one asshole of a flamer) and tah tah for now.**

**-Jess**


	29. Until Daddy Says So

**Alright, hopefully you read the last chapter, if not... well that just wouldn't make any sense at all. But anyway, here's the next chapter. **

/|\

The next morning was slow and quiet. Everyone slept in, except Victoria, who spent the entire night tossing and turning on the couch. Even the Joker got a few extra winks. Amy woke up first, tripping tiredly down the stairs to the kitchen to grab some breakfast. Next was Mike, who, in the process of getting out of bed, somehow managed to wake up his entire room. So, Mike, Jason, and Bruce all trudged down stairs and into the living room to get a head start on Halo. Nancy slumped in after a while, cane in hand.

"Good morning sleeping beauty!" Mike chirped, suddenly very awake.

Everyone in the room winced at the sudden noise.

"Shud up Mike," Bruce grumbled.

Mike just grinned, hopped over the couch and caught Nancy in a big, swinging hug.

"Ow-ow-ow-ow-ow," Nancy said.

"Sorry," Mike mumbled.

He set Nancy on her feet and hopped over the couch to play more Halo. Nancy shook her head and headed to the kitchen. Amy stood over a box of what use to be food.

"Anything?" Nancy asked.

"Nope," Amy sighed.

Their stomachs growled at them. They looked at each other and Nancy offered to give the box another look, Amy complied and hopped up to sit on the counter. Nancy set her cane off to one side and pulled the box up to look inside.

"Where's J?" Amy asked.

"Heard 'im in the other room," Nancy said.

"Pro'ly messing with dangerous chemicals and junk," Amy replied nonchalantly.

"Pro'ly," Nancy agreed, "He said something about holding up Wal-Mart last night."

"Did he?" Amy asked, "How's yer shoulder?"

"Fine," Nancy said. She pulled out a half empty box of crackers and handed them to Amy.

"Thanks," Amy said.

"Sure," Nancy said, her head half concealed by the box.

"Did anything... you know, happen?" Amy asked.

"Last night? Nah, he spared me the turmoil," Nancy said, then she remembered something. "When we were talking yesterday, and you said Mike told you something about me, what'd he say?"

Amy sat for a moment as if she hadn't heard Nancy's question and rolled the box from side to side in her hands. Only when Nancy retracted her head from the now empty box did Amy answer.

"He said that when you were growing up, you never really had anyone to talk to," Amy said. "That you were always the one that other people went to for help. He never really said who, but he said that you never had anyone to lean on. You were everyone's rock. I dunno... something like that."

Nancy pushed the box aside and leaned against the counter, sequencing her thoughts into words. It was true, Nancy had always been everyone's mental support, their moral uplift. From her mother to her uncle to her friends. Everyone went to her to talk about their problems: the emos would talk about their parents, the gangsters would talk to her about losing friends in drive-by shootings and gun fights, preps would talk about hating life, the cheerleaders would talk about their bulimia and anorexia, and nearly every gay person on campus would depend on her to keep their secrets. She had no secret keeper, no rock to lean on, no one to talk to. It was a sad existence, and Nancy knew it. After a while, she licked her lips and spoke.

"My mom had me when she was eighteen," she said. "A few months earlier, my grandma was murdered by a big group of gang bangers. My mom nearly killed herself. My grandpa told her to keep up with everything for the baby, so she did. She stopped doing drugs as soon as she found out about me, and she stopped all her other bad habits, too. My mom wasn't exactly a model student if you know what I mean." Nancy looked up at Amy, who was leaned forward, listening intently. "My dad ran off before I was born, so I don't really have one at all. But when I was born, I was my mom's rock, her "reason for living" she told me in my younger years. She told me that I was what kept her strong after her mom died. I was born in New Mexico by the way." Amy nodded and motioned for her to continue.

"When I was about ten, my mom decided to move to Gotham 'cause Wayne Industries needed more workers. About two weeks after we moved here, we got a call from the hospital that my grandpa was dead. My mom went into another near depression. Thankfully, my uncle was there, and I was, too. We stayed with Robert for about a year until my mom got enough money to buy our own house. I was sad to leave, but I was glad I had my own bedroom. Then I started Junior High and met Mike. I met my other friends Carol

and Anthony, too. Carol and Anthony have been going out since the 8th grade. While I, on the other hand, have never gone on a date in my life."

Amy gave her a surprised look.

"Apparently, High School boys are afraid of intelligence and dignity. Anyway, Mike bounced from girl to girl, finding good ones every so often, and find others that... weren't so great. The one I like the most I think was named Julianna Sykes. Mike was so desperate to date that girl that he actually asked me to help. He ended up typing this love note on pretty paper and putting it in her locker with a rose and everything. The only reason they broke up at the end of Mike's senior year was because they were heading to different parts of the country. And as far as I know, Carol and Anthony are still going out."

"Wow," Amy said.

"Yeah," Nancy nodded.

"You've seriously never gone out with anyone?" Amy asked.

"Seriously," Nancy grinned, amused that Amy was still focused on the brushed-over subject.

Amy's eyes widened, "That means you've never kissed anyone before, which means that-" Amy gasped and put her hands over her mouth.

"I know," Nancy sighed. "He stole my first kiss. That bastard."

Mike stumbled into the room then, phone in hand.

"Yes... yes... Really? Good," he said, "That jerk'll get ass raped and- I'm kidding Carol... but seriously."

Nancy gave him a confused look and waved at the phone. He mouthed that it was Carol and held up a finger to tell her to hold on.

"Uh huh. Yeah. Well see, I told you he'd, you know,_ snap _sooner or later. He was crazy to start with, the whole shooting thing must've sent him over the edge. Uh huh. Yeah? Well, that's what he gets for thinking he's Jesus. He _should _be in a _padded_ cell if you ask me... yeah well- okay. Yes. Yes if I see her I'll tell her you said hi. I'll tell my roomies, too. 'Kay, I love you, too, Carol. Tell everyone I love them too... yes, even Anthony. Alright, bye Carol."

Mike hung up his phone and shoved it in his pocket.

"That was Carol," he said. "Eric's in prison, they charged him as an adult."

Nancy sighed and smiled. A little retribution for her suffering.

"Good," she said.

Amy patted Nancy on the shoulder and handed her the box of crackers. Nancy took a couple nearly stale crackers from the box and chewed them up with a grimace.

"She says "hi", too," Mike said, a grin on his face.

"Hi, Carol," Nancy said.

Amy shook her head and headed into the living room, bearing gifts of stale crackers. Nancy reached into her pocket and pulled out an almost empty tube of Chapstick. She popped the cap open and frowned when nothing but a pink shrivel remained of her lip moisturizer. She sighed and rubbed it as best she could against her lips, but it only made them crack and bleed a little. Mike pouted pathetically at her and laughed when Nancy shook her head at him.

"I need more chapstick," she said, stating the obvious.

"I can see that- hey! Don't wipe your blood all over my shirt!" Mike swatted Nancy's arm away from her face when she reached up to wipe the blood from her lips.

"Okay, okay," Nancy said, 'We'll probably be getting more clothes when we go to Wal-Mart anyway." "Some new underwear would be nice," Mike nodded.

"I second that," Nancy nodded too.

They walked out into the living room, hoping to snatch a few more crackers and play some Halo.

/|\

Upstairs, the Joker was on the phone with someone very important. Jonathan Crane, or Scarecrow if you prefer. Scarecrow had been in contact with the Joker for some time now, getting calls on occasion, calling for information, stats on the mob, all that jazz. This time, however, he had a gotten a phone call in the middle of a "business meeting" and was none to happy until he heard what the Joker wanted. And what the Joker wanted, the Scarecrow had.

"How many again?" the Scarecrow asked.

"As many as you can find," the Joker said, "I need as many crazies as you can get your hands on. And I'm only assuming thats _a lot_."

"Yes, yes that is _a lot_," the Scarecrow said.

He was very intrigued with the Joker's demands. Not that they couldn't be met, it was just a strange request from a strange man. No. No the Joker's demands could be met very easily.

"When and where my friend?" the Scarecrow asked.

"Tomorrow at Wal-Mart," the Joker grinned.

They was a pause on the other line, "May I ask why?"

"Gonna hold the place up and wait for Batty," the Joker giggled. "I miss him, don't you?"

"Not particularly," Scarecrow admitted, "At any rate, I'll have the lot shipped to you tomorrow- at what time, did you want them, exactly?"

"Around 5, if you can manage," the Joker suggested.

"I can manage that quite nicely," Scarecrow grinned on the other line. "Five o'clock it is then! We'll see you then Joker. Buh-bye now."

The Joker hung up and shook his head. He stood from his chair and ran his hands over the Wal-Mart blueprints he had snatched from one of his Techies. The store had two entrances, each with two sets of automatic opening doors. They whole building was crowded with security cameras and people. The security cameras wouldn't be a problem, he had two computer geeks on his side. The people, on the other hand, would be a much bigger problem: there were hundreds of them. Men, woman, and children, all of them equipped with a cell phone, or more.

"Damn," the Joker sighed.

He would ask the Techies to look up cell phone blocks in a minute, they couldn't be that hard to come by, right? They basically sent out radio waves that screwed with the signal enough to fry the service and render the phone completely useless. Easy enough right? Right. For the remainder of his time in solitude, the Joker decided how to kill off all the rented cronies without getting rid of his non-rented cronies.

"Batty'll take care of most of 'em," he mumbled, "And, hell, I'll kill the rest of 'em."

He shrugged it off and rolled up the blueprints, shoved them in a box, and went downstairs.

/|\

"You know what else'd be great?" Mike asked.

"Hm?" everyone asked.

"Food," Mike nodded to himself.

"Yeah," Nancy said, "And you know what else? Underwear."

"Yeah," everyone said.

For the past fifteen minutes, everyone had been mumbling to each other what they wanted from Wal-Mart. Now that the opportunity had been given to them, they had been fantasizing about how wonderful it would be to have things like soap, food, shampoo, and underwear. You know, the simple things.

The Joker stood at the foot of the stairs and watched them. Mike, Bruce and Jason were all slouched so low down the couch that he could only see the tops of their heads. Nancy and Amy sat in the love seat in the same position, and Victoria had moved over to the recliner. She stared at him in terror from the corners of her eyes. He grinned at her and moved over to the love seat to hover over Nancy. Sadly, she noticed him before he could scare her.

"Where've you been Chuckles?" she asked.

"Plotting your demise," the Joker said.

"I would have thought as much," Nancy mumbled.

Amy shook her head and stared lazily at the boys. Everyone looked miserable.

"What the hell's a matter with you people?" the Joker shouted.

"I got in a fight," Nancy said.

"We're all hungry," Mike said.

"The X-Box just shut off on it's own," Bruce said.

"And there's probably something else wrong, too," Amy said.

Everyone gave her a strange look and Amy chuckled to herself.

"What do we have to eat?" the Joker asked, starting towards the kitchen.

"Nothing," everyone said.

He looked at them from over his shoulder and asked them if they were serious. They said they were in the same monotonous voice they had been speaking in for the past few minutes. He gave them all a flat look and glared over at Jason, or, Techie Two.

"Techie," he said. Jason looked up. "You can make one of those cell phone jammers, right?"

"In my sleep," Jason bragged, still bored.

"I bet they're a lot better when you're awake," the Joker guessed.

"Yes, sir," Jason nodded.

"Get me one," he demanded.

"I'll need some supplies-"

The Joker reached into his coat pocket and pulled out the keys to the van. He tossed them to Jason, but Mike caught them.

"I wanna drive," Mike insisted.

Jason looked at the Joker, who told him to take Mike with him. Jason grumbled in compliance, and said he needed help lifting things anyway. Mike grinned in triumph and skipped out the door with Jason, grabbing his mask from off the couch just in case. Jason continued to grumble out the door and out to the van.

"Just ignore him," Amy said. "He gets like this when it comes to team work."

"Relationships are gonna be hard for him," Nancy said.

The room went silent again and the Joker finally gave up.

"You guys are boring," he accused. "I'm goin' back upstairs."

He tossed up his arms one more time as he stomped back up the stairs. Nancy watched him go and looked at Amy who had started making faces at her.

"I'm hungry," Nancy said after a little face-making competition with Amy.

"Me, too," Bruce said.

Victoria just nodded and held her curled up position. Amy nodded too and picked up an X-Box controller. Bruce said it didn't work, but Amy tried anyway. When she pressed the _ON_ button on the front of the X-Box, the light lit up, flashed at her, and shut off again. Amy frowned at it and slumped back over to the love seat.

"Told 'joo," Bruce mumbled. "We got nothin' t' do."

"I find it sad that we're so dependent on technology," Nancy said.

"I find it strange that you speak in philosophic terms at times," Amy said.

"It's what I do when I get bored," Nancy said.

The room went silent again.

/|\

The van was loud.

Mike, in his desperation for some kind of noise, had found a radio station with just enough rock and roll to kill a normal person. No commercials, not ads, no talking, except, of course, the occasional echo-y voice that announced the name of the station. Jason, after winning the argument with Mike over who would drive, actually started to enjoy himself somewhere along the line, and, would occasionally sing along with Mike and all the loud lyrics that blasted through the speakers.

Jason made a few quick turns and pulled into an alley.

"Its always an alley isn't it?" Mike joked.

"This guy has the goods," Jason argued.

"Yeah, yeah," Mike said.

They walked down the alley for a while, made a few quick turns and finally ended up in front of an old brick covered building. Jason gave the alley a good look around and banged on a steel door that seemed to be part of the wall itself. Someone had painted over it.

A voice behind the door cried, "Who is it?"

"It's Jason," Jason said, "I'm making a blocker."

A few clicks radiated from behind the door and it swung open on rusted hinges to reveal a slinky, greasy man, who seemed to be about 42 years old. Mike shivered.

"I see you've made some modifications, Ronald," Jason said.

"Had to," Ronald said. "Too many people breakin' in after muggin' people. They'd come in and rough everything up and leave. I kept loosing equipment."

"Thats awful," Jason sympathized.

"Get inside 'fore someone sees," Ronald said, "Who's he?"

"That's Mike, he won't cause any trouble," Jason assured.

Mike just nodded and glanced down the alley one more time before following Jason through the door. The room they entered was dark, except the black lights and buzzing fluorescent bulbs that lit up glass cases of action figures and pieces of electrical equipment. One wall was completely covered by a row of rusted metal cabinets filled with boxes and wires. Ronald walked over and started looking through boxes, pulling them off their shelves, sorting through the contents, and glancing at names written in Sharpie on the sides.

"Here ya' go," he said after pulling a box marked "BLOCKER" off one of the shelves.

"_Thank you_," Jason drawled.

"Sure," Ronald said.

Jason walked over to a table covered in wires, pushed them aside and set the box down to sift through its contents. Mike, meanwhile, had shoved his hands in his pockets and was wandering around looking through the glass at Ronald's collection of action figures: Death Note, Naruto, Chobits, Zatch Bell, Poke'mon, Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy, Hannibal, Hellraisers, Resident Evil, World of Warcraft, Starwars, GI Joe, The Ring, Portal, Watchmen, and a bunch of other random, skimpily dressed anime girls cuddling stuffed animals.

"Ya' like 'em?" Ronald asked.

Mike jumped and turned to him, "Uh, yeah."

Ronald smiled and grabbed Mike by the shoulder to start explaining other characters to him. Jason looked back at at them and shook his head when Mike started to grin like a kid at a candy store before going back to pulling wires out of the box and stuffing them away in the bag over his shoulder.

Mike, after a long discussion about Resident Evil with Ronald, finally left with Jason out the big painted door when he said he had everything he needed. Mike grumpily complied and left the room full of toys, but smiled when Jason tossed him the keys to the van and told him he could drive back.

"Really?" Mike giggled.

"Really," Jason said.

"Sweet! But first we gotta stop somewhere," Mike said.

"Just as long as we get back to the Home before boss gets pissy," Jason said.

Mike smiled.

/|\

Back at the Home, Nancy, Amy, Bruce, and Victoria were still sitting in the living room, hungry, tired, and bored. Bruce suggested they play cards, then he realized that they didn't have any except the ones the Joker used in his bombs. After that, everyone let out a unanimous sigh and slouched lower on the couches.

Upstairs, the Joker couldn't help but glare at the floor as if he could burn holes through it. His minions were becoming boring and tiresome to keep up with. Right about now he just wished tomorrow would come so they would stop complaining and eat and shower or whatever the hell they wanted to do.

Then, the door slammed downstairs and joyous cries of "Mike!" and "Jason!" and "You brought food!" echoed through the halls.

The Joker stood and made his way downstairs to see what the fuss was all about. Mike and Jason had in fact brought food. Giant bags of hamburgers and fries and crates of soft drinks covered the coffee table. Bruce had lifted Mike off the floor and given him a noogie before tearing into a hamburger. Mike rubbed his head and snatched a drink before grabbing a burger from one of the other bags. Nancy was already sitting on the couch, a burger in her hands, fries in her lap, and a soft drink in between her legs. Amy sat down next to her with the same arrangement of food and smiled at her. Victoria sat quietly in the recliner and stared at the Joker as he stood at the foot of the stairs. He grinned wickedly at her and she looked away.

"Alright," the Joker said. "You've managed to stir the dead from their boring slumber, now where's my-"

Jason set the cell phone blocker on the table and said, "Made it on the way here, Mike drove."

The Joker blinked at him and shrugged before picking up the little device and asking Jason if it worked.

"Tested it on the way here too," Jason said.

The Joker nodded in mild appreciation and asked how much range it had.

"Two hundred and fifty yards," Jason said, "Hopefully that'll cover Wal-Mart."

"It will," the Joker grinned.

/|\

Jim walked into MCU at about 3 o'clock in the morning and greeted the night shift as they punched out.

"Mornin' Commissioner," one of them said.

"Morning, is Rob still in his office?"

"Yep, been there since you left. Only gone out get more coffee."

"Thanks."

Robert sat at his desk and filed through folders and papers. There were dark bags under his eyes and the trash can by his desk was filled to the brim with styrofoam cups. He rubbed his eyes and looked up when Jim walked in, plastic baggy in hand.

"Hiya Jim," he said, "Watcha got there?"

Jim pulled a tissue from a box of Kleenex on Robert's desk and pulled the bottle lightly from the bag. He set it in front of Robert and threw the tissue away. Robert stared at the bottle and looked up at Jim.

"Was it him?" he asked.

"Yes," Jim said. "He knows where I live."

"You should stay at a hotel," Robert slurred.

"You should get some sleep," Jim said. "I'm moving my family out of town. I'll be staying here to help you find Nancy."

Robert nodded and pushed the files aside.

"You should sent it to get tested for prints," he said.

"I will," Jim said, "Go home Rob. Get some sleep. I'll call you if anything comes up."

Robert shook his head, "Can't go."

"Go Rob," Jim said, "As the Commissioner I'm _ordering _you to go home and sleep. At least until the sun comes up. Get some rest, get something real to eat, shower... something."

"Alright," Robert finally said.

He rose from his seat and grabbed his coat as he bade Jim goodnight. Jim made sure Robert got out to his car and turned back to retrieve his evidence. He sent it off to test it for fingerprints and grabbed a cup of coffee before heading back out to his own car. He would have Barbara pack up for the kids and send them all to stay with Barbara's sister in Metropolis. They'd be safer there.

When he got home he took Barbara in his arms and told her the news. She cried for a while but did as she was told and packed her children's things. She would drive out in the morning to her sister's house and wait until Jim called and told her everything was safe.

So she did. That morning she woke her kids like she did every morning and ushered them out to the car. When they asked why their things were in boxes in the trunk, she just said they were going to go and visit their aunt for a while. They asked how long "a while" was.

She said, "Until daddy says so."

[/|\]

**Okay then. No Wal-Mart yet, sorry. Just some leading-up-to stuff. Like all the other chapters, this one took a disgustingly long amount of time to crank out. I should have the next chapter out within the next couple of weeks... Maybe. If not, you'll just have to bare with me. I have a job, school, and homework to try and keep up with. Even with Spring Break to help me out, I won't have much time. I'll be working every day of the week. Yay. **

**Anyway, thank you for all your support and reviews and such. I hope you enjoyed it... if not, it's probably my fault. **


	30. WalMart

**Okay, the last chapter was probably... really boring. Except maybe Mike's odd appreciation for scantily dressed anime girls, but other than that, there wasn't much going on. Hopefully in this chapter I can liven things up a bit!**

/|\

_"Hey mom... How was work? Good? That's nice. Going upstairs, huh? Alright. I'll see you up there, I'm just going to grab my phone. Hm, my phone's not here. That's weird. Oh well... Here I come mom! What're you doing mom? Why are you breaking the window mom? Mom stop! Get away from the window, you'll hurt yourself! Mom stop! Don't fall! Let go! No! Mom? Are you okay? You're bleeding! Oh God. Help! He- Jeremy! You have t- Jeremy... Oh God... what's wrong with your face? Who're all you people? No, leave Jeremy alone. Put him down, leave him alone! Let me go, leave me alone! Leave her alone! Let go! Stop! Help! Rob! Help! J! Help me! NO! Let! Them! Go!"_

/|\

"No... Let- Rob... Let me go!" Nancy shot up in bed and hit her head on the top bunk. Her breathing was erratic, and sweat poured down her face and neck. She could hear her pulse in her ears, feel it in her fingertips. Amy's head bobbed down from the top bunk. Nancy was woozy.

"You okay?" Amy asked.

Nancy shook her head and swallowed the vomit that rose in her throat. Amy gave her a concerned look as Nancy fumbled around in the dark for her jeans. She found them, slipped them on and stumbled across the hall into the bathroom before throwing up in the sink. Amy scuttled into the bathroom and shut the door and turned on the lights. Both of the girls winced at the sudden light and Nancy braced herself on the ceramic pedestal sink top. Amy fluttered around the bathroom and rummaged through the cabinet above the toilet. She found a towel and tried to wave out the dust and bugs from its wrinkles, but it only made her sneeze. She ran it under the faucet and handed it to Nancy, who mumbled her thanks and rubbed the back of her neck, then ran it across her face.

"You okay?" Amy asked again. She rubbed Nancy's back in hopes of comforting her.

Nancy shook her head and rubbed her face dry. She slumped down to the floor and fiddled with the edge of the towel. Amy sat down next to her with her knees up to her chest and blinked down at the floor. The door creaked open and Mike poked his head in.

"Uh," he said.

"Go back to bed Mike," Nancy said.

Mike creased his brow at her and pouted a little before turning around and walking back down the hallway. Nancy told Amy to get to bed, too, and finally stood after giving her face one last rub down. She tossed the towel aside and turned off the light, letting her eyes adjust to the dark before opening the door and walking straight into the Joker.

He smirked at her and said, "I take it you're not sleeping well?"

"No," Nancy sighed, she could have swore Mike's door creaked open a bit more then before.

"Go to bed Mike," she whispered down the hall. Mike's door shut.

"Told you," the Joker leaned closer. "Told you you'd have nightmares."

He put his hands in his pockets and walked away. Nancy blinked in the dark and watched him go into his room. She shook her head and shoved her hands in her pockets, wishing she had some change to jangle. Instead, she just moved her fingers around and walked back into her room.

Amy asked her if she was okay, again, and Nancy told her to stop asking, that she was fine. She settled back into bed and took off her jeans. She didn't sleep though, she just tossed and turned and tried to get comfortable. It didn't work, so she resorted to putting on her jeans again and pacing around the room. She walked quietly, as not to wake Amy, and took the time to watch the sun rise above the bleak skyline.

"Wish we had some coffee," she mumbled as Amy got out of bed. Victoria was still downstairs.

"Yeah," Amy nodded slipping on her pants, "Food in general would be nice... you didn't sleep at all last night, did you?"

Nancy shook her head and looked out the window. "Couldn't," she mumbled.

Amy opened her mouth to say something, then shut it again. Nancy ran her tongue across her teeth and silently wished for a toothbrush.

"Let's go downstairs," Amy said.

Nancy nodded and followed Amy out the down and down the stairs.

"I almost forgot about Wal-Mart," Nancy said when she saw all of the guns and electronics scattered across the floor.

Mike looked up and smiled at her, "Hiyah Nancy," he said. "Feelin' better?"

"Yeah," Nancy lied. Her stomach hurt, her throat was sore, and she still couldn't get the image of her mother's dead body laying on the ground out of her mind. She could still hear Jeremy's screaming.

"I'm fine."

Mike smiled and said that he was glad. Then he said that there still wasn't any food, and Nancy sighed. Her stomach was empty.

"So much for the cheeseburger," she mumbled to herself.

Amy patted her on the shoulder and reassured her that they would be getting food at Wal-Mart. She smiled and went back upstairs to help Jason pack the rest of the blocking equipment. Nancy paced around the couch and finally settled down after Mike told her to stop stalking around like a vulture. Mike tossed a mask to her when she dozed off and chuckled when she nearly jumped off the couch. She dozed off again a moment later, her face in her hand and her elbow leaned against the arm of the couch.

"What's the matter with Nancy?" Jason asked from the bottom of the stairwell.

Mike told him about the night before and Jason nodded his sympathy. Amy came down a moment later and snatched a mask out of the air when Mike threw it at her. She nodded at Nancy and Mike gave her a funny look, then smiled.

"What happened last night anyway?" he asked.

"Dunno, she didn't say," Amy shrugged.

"Hm."

The room went quiet again, and Victoria, who had been sitting silently on the love seat, shuffled her feet. The Joker shoved his way past Amy and into the living room. Nancy sighed in her sleep, then proceeded to jump out of her skin when the Joker swiped her elbow from the couch arm. She glared at him sleepily, but was to tired to snap at him. Mike blinked at him, then went back to packing.

Mike's angry, Nancy thought.

Reading Mike's body language had become second nature to Nancy. She had known him since he was about eleven, when she first moved to Gotham. The quick blink was just a sign of frustration that Nancy understood; Mike didn't like people poking fun at his friends, not even his employer. Nancy gave him a slow nod to ease his nerves and he grinned stupidly at her. The Joker crooked an eyebrow at her, then let it go.

"You sleep any last night, doll?" the Joker grinned.

"Nope." Nancy swung her feet up onto the couch and laid her head down again.

Mike frowned and zipped up his duffle bag. He shuffled to his feet and leaned against the couch as the room fell silent. The Joker stood for a moment and hovered over Nancy's near-sleeping form before looking up and blinking at them.

"You finally ready?" he asked.

They all nodded, except Nancy, who just sighed sleepily.

"S' about time. Wake up gimpy, we gotta go!" The Joker shook the couch and Nancy sat up, grumbling.

Everyone trooped out to the van, and Nancy waited for the rumbling to put her to sleep.

/|\

Nancy woke up to the sound of screeching brakes, shattering glass, and screaming. She shot up from Mike's shoulder and nearly fell over Amy when everyone started to pile out of the van. She stumbled and fell to her knees in front of a claw machine before being hoisted to her feet by Bruce. He shoved a gun in her hands and patted her on the back. Nancy reached up to rub her eyes, but her fingers hit plastic and she realized, with some relief, that she was wearing her mask.

Off in the distant aisles, gunfire could be heard, and Nancy figured that they had some backup. From behind her, Mike shouted at everyone to sit down and shut up while they still had a face. To her right, Jason and Amy were fine tuning the blocker and nodding their approval. To her left, Victoria scampered off to do some shopping, and the Joker was trying to chat pleasantly with the doorman. Mike nudged her.

"C'mon! Let's go do some shopping!" he laughed.

Nancy clung to her gun and leapt after him as he sprinted down the aisle. Amy shook her head at them and patted Jason on the shoulder before heading off, too. Jason stayed behind and helped Bruce intimidate customers into submission while they fumbled with their useless phones.

"The funny thing is," Jason said, "Even if the blocker shuts down, all the calls'll happen simultaneously so the phones'll jam themselves trying to navigate around all the other signals."

Bruce nodded and jerked at a customer, her phone clattered to the floor. Bruce laughed and kicked at someone else. Jason just shook his head slowly at Bruce's brutality. He was more of a metal-tormenting type of person. He turned to a girl wrapped up in her boyfriend's coat and asked her if she had seen Hannibal, she nodded and said yes. Jason bent down and picked up a shard of broken glass.

"Try peeling off your face," he told the girl with a laugh.

The poor girl shuddered and fainted. Jason chuckled cruelly and turned to Bruce, who nodded and cast a glance at the jewelry counter.

"What's up with Twitch-a-lot over there?" He leaned towards Jason and nodded out towards the counter.

Jason said it was one of the mental patients that the Scarecrow had sent over from Arkham, and to stay away from him. Bruce gave the deranged man an odd look, nodded, and turned on his heel to stride down the check out lanes.

"Where're you going?" Jason asked.

"Shoppin'," Bruce shrugged.

Jason blinked and turned to another customer, asking if they had seen Saw III.

/|\

Mike grinned and trotted on in front of Nancy. He snatched a backpack from off one of the hooks and threw it over his shoulder.

"I thought you grabbed a bag from the house," Nancy said, grabbing a messenger bag from the rack.

"Packed it for Victoria," Mike explained, "It's got explosives in it."

Nancy grabbed a pair of scissors and a mirror from a shelf and cocked her head to one side at Mike, he didn't notice.

"What for?" Nancy asked.

"Tell you later!" Mike said, Nancy could hear him smile.

Mike trotted into the hygiene section and started pulling bottles of body wash from off the shelves. Nancy laughed at him, not considering him the most hygienic of people. He threw a bottle of shampoo at her and dashed around to grab a toothbrush. Nancy took seven. Mike laughed and asked her: "Why so many?"

"Just in case," Nancy mumbled.

He laughed again and walked down another aisle. Nancy took the opportunity to grab some "feminine care products" and backpedal to grab a bottle of hair conditioner from the aisle behind her. She snatched a few razors and laughed at Mike as he tried to fit one to many bottles of lotion in his backpack. He just tipped over a cart, scattering its contents, and tossed his backpack inside. Nancy shoved her gun in her bag and tossed it in the cart next to Mike's backpack. Mike puled Nancy's gun out and handed it to her.

"You're going to have to learn how to use it sometime," he said.

Nancy frowned behind her mask and held the gun at her side. Mike patted her on the shoulder and pushed his cart along. They passed the electronics section and Nancy stopped to look at some of the video games. Mike stopped too, and walked up behind her.

"You can try on that," he said, nodded at the case.

"Won't J get pissed?" Nancy asked.

"Hell no," Mike shook his head. "He'd probably do the same thing. Just to liven things up a bit."

Nancy leveled her gun.

"Careful, it'll kick back and hit you in the face if ya' don't hold it right. And remember, squeeze, don't pull."

Nancy's hands shook and she held the gun with both hands.

"It's not hard, I promise."

Nancy squeezed the trigger and reeled back with the kick. She caught the edge of the cart, and jumped at the sudden screams of the people around her. Mike laughed and held on to the cart for balance. He was still giggling when he started to load up some extra games and a new X-Box. Nancy just trembled and clung to a rack she had moved to.

"C'mon, at least you hit it!" Mike laughed and started back along.

Nancy glared at him and trudged along to the clothing section. After a few moments of estimation and guessing, Mike and Nancy successfully rounded up enough clothes for everyone in their approximated sizes.

"Whatever happened to that bag you were packing at the Home?" Nancy asked, tossing a package of underwear into her bag.

"It's with Vic," Mike said. "I filled it up with explosives."

Nancy sighed and shook her head. "Why do you need explosives?"

"We're gonna set them off tomorrow when the cleaning crew's here," Mike shrugged. "We'll set off one, then and another, and another, and another, and anoth-"

"I get it."

Mike giggled and skidded to a halt in front of the bread aisle.

"Hello ladies." He pretended to tip a hat to Amy and Victoria.

"Hey Mike," Amy said with a nod.

Victoria didn't say anything.

"You almost ready? I'll go grab Jason," Mike offered.

"Sure, we're just about done here. Grab the van while you're at it. It'll be easier to pack up all the stuff," Amy said.

Victoria remained silent and continued shuffling through a duffle bag that was slung over her shoulder. She'd take out a little box and set it on a shelf, pick out another one and set it on another shelf, and another, another.

Mike reeled around and started back towards the entrance when Jason pelted down the aisle at them.

"We have bats!" he shouted.

Mike cursed to himself and ran down the length of the aisle before backpedaling towards them, gun blazing. He turned and booked it down past Jason and the cart before grabbing Nancy and pulling her off to one side. Nancy gasped at the sudden darkness that hopped from aisle to aisle.

"Mike!" she shouted.

Mike ducked around a corner and fired up at the Batman. Nancy trembled and fired up at him when he flew over her head. She heard the van's engine rumble down the way and watched it skid around the corner. The Joker hit the brakes and Mike had the back doors open before the van stopped moving. Amy and Victoria started loading everything into the back and Mike hopped out to grab Nancy.

"Hurry up! We gotta go!" he shouted over the gun fire.

Then Nancy saw them. One or two at first, then dozens and dozens of them. They all wore clown masks and guns. They all twitched a little and mumbled to themselves, and when Nancy turned to Mike, he saw them too.

"Who are they?" Nancy whispered.

"Distractions," Mike whispered back. "Get in the van."

The section had become very quiet as Jason and the others saw the Distractions. The Joker just sat in the drivers seat of the van and drummed his fingers against the steering wheel. The Batman had stopped on the top of an aisle and was gazing down at the suddenly silent crowd when all hell broke loose. Everyone took aim and fired at once, letting all the shells and clips drop to the floor.

The Batman dove to the floor and sprinted down an aisle. He grabbed two gunners by the wrists and broke them. He kicked one in the chest as he tried to reload and sent him down to the other end of the aisle. Another came up behind him and wrapped their arms around his neck. He let his mask's defense system take care of him. The man stumbled back and took out two others with him on his way to the floor. The Batman turned and roundhouse kicked three gunmen in the chests before turning and punching one in the throat and elbowing another in the face. He heard the engine rumble on the far side of the section and shoved his way past empty-gunned maniacs and climbing up the shelves. He spotted the van, still in the same spot it had been in earlier. A few rounds pinged off the titanium armor of his forearms and he jumped down to land on their owners.

"Boss!" Mike shouted.

The Joker turned and met eyes with his best friend/enemy.

"Batty!" he shouted giddily. "Where've you been? I missed you, you know that?" He turned back to Mike and murmured, "Start up the van and get going when I say so."

Mike nodded and shut the back doors. Victoria hopped in the back seat and waited.

Jason turned to Amy as she got in and said, "He took out the blocker. We only have a few more minutes until the signals sort themselves out again."

Amy nodded and jumped up next to Victoria.

"Where's Bruce?" Nancy asked.

Jason's shoulders slumped and he crawled on top of the van to get a better look around. Bruce was at the jewelry counter, grappling with a exceedingly difficult psycho.

"He's up front," Jason called down over the gunfire. "We'll need to pick him up on the way out."

Nancy nodded and jumped in the van. Victoria squirmed away and held her gun through a crack in the window.

"Where's the girl?" the Batman growled.

"Well I got two in the van and the other's... Oh, you mean Nancy!" the Joker gasped. "She's back home. Asleep probably. I would be too if I were her."

"What did you do?" the Batman hissed.

The Joker just licked his lips and started to pace a little.

"What did you do with her, Joker?" the Batman nearly shouted.

"You ever eaten anyone out before?" the Joker asked in a casual tone.

The Batman snatched the Joker off the ground in mid-step and pinned him against the side of the van. The Joker giggled and let his tongue reach for the scars on his lips.

"If you've done anything to her-"

"That and so much more." The Joker laughed and kicked Batman against a shelf. Jason leapt into the passenger's seat and Mike dove for the wheel. The Joker shoved Amy inside and hopped in next to Nancy. She was staring at him; either gawking or glaring, he couldn't tell. Mike hit the gas, skid around a corner, floored the brake and squealed up next to Bruce. Bruce threw the back door open and jumped in next to Amy.

Batman watched them slide down the aisle then turned to scale the shelf behind him. A few of the Joker's expendable freaks pulled at his cape and started to claw their way up the opposite sides of the shelving. Batman would punch one off, kick another, break one's wrist and send them crashing down to the floor.

He reached the top and saw the van squeal to a halt at the jewelry counter. He took a step back, gripped the edges of his cape and leapt off the shelving.

At the jewelry counter, Bruce finally gave up trying to negotiate with the crazy person who had tried to choke him, and hit the poor fellow in the face. The back door of the van slid open as it slid to a stop on the traction-less tile and Bruce tumbled in shouting, "Hit it!".

Something hit the van. Mike turned in his seat and watched Nancy duck as a pair of feet shaped dents attempted to hit her in the head. The windshield cracked in a spiderweb, and Jason pointed his gun at the ceiling. He squeezed the trigger and riddled the top of the van in bullet holes.

The Batman tumbled over the side and stood up. Mike aimed his gun through his window just in time to have it yanked from his grasp and shoved back in his face. He slumped over the wheel and fell out of the van when Batman opened the door. Nancy threw the back door open and did something she never thought she would do: she shot the good guy.

The bullets ricocheted off, of course, but they definitely got the Batman's attention. He turned to face her and stumbled back when Jason unloaded another clip into his bulletproof chest. Nancy fell out of the van when Bruce charged out like a mad bull and crept over to Mike's side. He was out cold.

The Joker was laughing.

"Nice shootin' doll!" he cackled.

She took a few seconds to mull over the idea of turning her gun on him, but checked it, set the idea aside, and stood up to open fire on Batman again. Mike crawled to his hands and knees next to her a moment later and shook the blur away from his vision. He fumbled for his gun and, still on the ground, shot at the Caped Crusader. Jason backed off and winced when Bruce tackled Batman through a display set up.

Bruce stood up, wiped his hands and started back towards the van. He helped Mike to his feet and shoved him in the driver's seat. Nancy, across the way, had tip-toed her way over to the Batman's seemingly unconscious form. Mike revved the engine and waved for Nancy to get moving. She nodded and turned to the van-

She heard glass tinkle and wood crack. She turned slowly around and yelped when the Batman grabbed her by the collar of the shirt, and threw her against the jewelry counter. Mike screamed and jumped out of the van.

Nancy screamed, too. Glass shredded the back of her shirt and the skin underneath. She jerked in pain and screamed when glass ran against skin. Nancy saw red, and for some odd reason purple, but then she realized that the Joker had pried her away from the glass case and handed her to Bruce. She felt the van's cheap fabric seats rumble when the van roared out through the gaping whole from whence it came. It shuddered and glass flaked from the windows. Mike and Jason sat in the front seat. Mike had taken off his mask and was using one and to drive and the other to stop the blood from rushing out his nose. Jason gripped his side and groaned in pain. Next to her, Bruce rubbed his arm and the Joker had a hand on her shoulder. After a moment, she realized that she was nearly on her hands and knees in her seat. She couldn't see Amy and Victoria.

_They must be in the back, _she thought.

After about half an hour, the van stopped, the lights flicked off, and the keys jangled as Mike got out of the car. Jason and Bruce went around back and started lifting boxes our of the trunk. Amy and Victoria crwaled over the seat and started unloading boxes and brining them into the house. The Joker hefted Nancy out of the van, in the house, up the stairs, and into his room.

"What am I gonna do with you?" he mumbled.

"Put me out of my misery? ... Please?" Nancy groaned.

The Joker chuckled and set her on her feet.

"Ow," Nancy said.

She leaned against the wall on her shoulder, but the glass still shifted and Nancy swallowed the lump in her throat. The Joker pulled up a chair and told her to sit down in it. Nancy trudged over and sat with her legs around the back and her hands cradling her face. She slipped the sweaty mask up over her head and set it on her knee. She swallowed another lump and sighed.

Another chair screeched across the floor behind her and Nancy turned slightly to look at the Joker as he flicked the air out of a syringe.

"What?" he asked innocently. The giggle that followed made Nancy wince. "Hold this for me, will ya'?"

Nancy held the syringe with her thumb and forefinger. She glared at it and stiffened when the sound of a switchblade reached her ears.

"Don't-" she choked.

The back of her shirt lifted away and vanished with the sound of tearing cloth. Nancy shuddered and nearly dropped the syringe. The Joker pulled the syringe from her shaking fingers and told her to relax.

"Stop shakin' would ya'?" he grumbled. "It'll just hurt more."

"What's that? I can't hear you over the searing pain." Nancy started to breath more evenly and her shaking ceased.

She felt a pinch, then another, and another. Little pokes and prods made her shudder and bite her lip to the point of nearly breaking the skin. But then the pain eased and nearly vanished as the morphine started working. Nancy sighed and relaxed.

The Joker licked his lips and reached for the clippers he had set aside on his dresser and started sliding little bits of glass out of Nancy's back. He had taken his gloves off and Nancy stiffened when his bare hands ran across her skin. It's not that she could really feel them, but the pressure was there, and the sensation made her heart race.

_Just remember that he's crazy_, she thought. _Just remember that he'd kill you soon as look at you._

Thinking didn't help. It just made her heart race faster, in a bad way. It just scared her.

"You really took a hell of a beatin' doll," the Joker mumbled. "If it makes you feel any better, you won't need stitches."

"Just as long as I don't end up unconscious in your room again," Nancy sighed.

"What? You didn't like that?" the Joker giggled. "I enjoyed it."

"Dirty old man," Nancy growled against her sleeve.

"Hm?" the Joker asked.

"Nothin', Chuckles," Nancy mumbled.

The Joker giggled again and set another bloody piece of glass on his dresser.

"Did you ever see Terminator?" Nancy asked when am awkward silence filled the room.

"Which one?" The Joker decided to play along.

"The second one."

"Mm hm."

"D'you remember the part when Sarah Conner finds her son, and Arnold Schwarzenegger's character's been shot at so many times that they have to sit in that old warehouse and she has to pull out all the bullets even though he can't feel them?"

The Joker giggled. "Yeah."

"This just reminds me of that."

The Joker let he talk for a while longer about movies she had seen and nodded and mm hm'd his responses. She just needed someone to talk to, so he talked. He humored her. And even after he was done pulling glass from between her shoulders, and he had set his things down, he still leaned back in his chair and talked to her.

After a little talk about the latest horror movies (and how they really weren't that scary, that they were just gross and grotesque), Nancy stopped and asked, "How long have you been done?"

"Since we started talking about V for Vendetta."

"Why'd you keep talking? Keep listening?"

"Because."

Nancy's eyes lowered themselves to the floor and up over her shoulder. The Joker grinned at her. She turned away and rubbed her flushed face.

"You might want to take a shower," the Joker suggested.

"It'll hurt, won't it?" Nancy asked.

"Yep." The Joker stood and swept the glass off his dresser into an old trash bin.

Nancy gripped the back of her shirt and stood up. Her back felt weird. She paced over to the door and stopped with her hand on the knob. The Joker looked at from the corner of his eye. She turned to him and opened her mouth to say something. She closed it looked down at the floor with a sigh. Nancy found that it was suddenly very hard to breathe. She let go of the handle and leaned against the door.

"S'matter doll?" the Joker took a step forward.

"I- ... I don't really..." Nancy fumbled over words and ran her hands through her hair.

She let go of her shirt and rubbed her eyes. She was so confused, and there were so many thoughts running through her head, and it was so hard to breathe, and-

"Nancy?"

Nancy looked up.

"Maybe you should sit down, Nancy." The Joker took Nancy by the shoulder and urged her forward.

Nancy moved, but not in the way that the Joker was leading her. Instead, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her lips against his. The Joker stopped and blinked. He pulled away and gave Nancy a confused look. She backpedaled and started sputtering apologies.

"Shut up, Nancy."

The Joker grabbed Nancy by the shoulders and pulled her against him. His hands moved to cradle her face, and Nancy's eyes fluttered shut. Her arms draped around his shoulders and her slender, shivering figure welded to his. A little moan growled in the back of Nancy's throat, and an arm wrapped around her waist. A hand gripped the back of her head.

Their lips parted for a moment and Nancy gasped for air. The Joker leaned forward and caught her lips again. His tongue lapped at her bottom lip and Nancy's gasp granted him entrance. Another moan made him chuckle. Nancy glared at him through hooded lids and she closed her lips. No matter how much he begged and pushed and licked, he couldn't pry her lips open. He let his hands wander.

Nancy tensed and she pulled away. But his lips moved down her jaw and his tongue played with the side of her neck. Nancy gasped for air and ran her fingers through the Joker's hair. He chuckled against her hot skin and pulled her shirt away from her shoulder.

"Don't-" Nancy moaned.

The Joker ran his tongue along the stitches and Nancy gasped.

"Does it hurt?" he growled against her ear.

Nancy nodded and shifted when he ran his fingers through her hair. He bent down and trailed kisses down to her stitches again.

"P-please. Don-"

A moan cut through her words when the kisses drew a line over her stitches and across her collar bone. He nipped the skin up to the hollow of her throat and kissed his way back up to her lips. They parted quite easily now. Her tongue felt so good against his. His hands held her waist and ran along the skin to her stitches there.

"I almost forgot about these," he purred.

Nancy was to high on the heat and kisses to do anything else but shut him up with her lips. His fingers moved against the torn flesh and made her moan. He would have chuckled had it nor been for the fact that the heat and kisses were getting to him, too-

_BAM! BAM! BAM!_

"Boss?" Mike's voice made Nancy pull back and look at the door. "We're done unpackin' the junk."

_Flick_. Back to reality. The heat vanished, the kisses stopped, the room grew quiet, and Nancy realized what she had been doing. Apparently, so did the Joker. His hands slid away and he gripped the side of his bed. He was panting and licking his lips. Nancy grabbed the dresser and clenched at her chest. Her heart slowed and the ecstasy blew over.

"Boss? What do you want us to do now? Is Nancy still in there?" Mike started firing questions through the door.

The Joker didn't look happy. "Get behind the door."

Nancy jumped and did as she was told. The Joker let go of the bed frame and opened the door.

"Oh, hey boss.... you look like hell." Mike looked a little concerned.

"I'm gettin' there, " the Joker growled.

Mike shuffled his feet and opened his mouth to say something.

"I don't care what you do, just don't break anything."

Mike nodded and walked away. Nancy heard him clunk down the stairs and peaked around the door. The Joker grinned at her and opened the door wider.

"You might want to shower," he said. "You'd look a little funny walkin' around looking like me."

Nancy blushed and edged around the door.

"Oh, and Nancy?" the Joker said as Nancy passed him. "I blame that one on you."

Nancy's face turned a lovely shade of apple red and she turned to bolt down the hallway to the bathroom when Amy's footsteps started up the stairs.

"Nancy?" she called.

Nancy slammed the bathroom door and jumped when Amy knocked on the door.

"Nancy?" Amy asked again. "Are you in there?"

"Takin' a shower!" Nancy said. "A cold shower."

"What?" Amy didn't hear her.

"Nothing!" Nancy heard the Joker laugh down the hall.

[/|\]

**Well, shit, that only took forever. I'm sorry. I really am. That's what I get for procrastinating. I'd start the chapter, think it sucked, start over, forget about it, restart it, run out of time, have homework to finish, have practice to go to... The list goes on and on. **

**But, excusing my terrible time managing skills, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and I hope you'll forgive me for taking FOREVER. **

**-Jess**


	31. can't breathe

**Well, since the last chapter only took about two months to put out (and I'm sure a bunch of people hate me now), I'll try and make this chapter a little better ("better" as in "on time"). **

**/|\**

Nancy was pacing in the shower. Though it didn't really seem to make sense, she was padding along the wet, plexiglass slab that was the floor of the shower. She had gotten over the mind-numbing pain that was brought on by her glass wounds (which had gone numb after a few moments of gasping and doubling over in pain) and had washed her hair. She had rubbed her skin raw and shaved every part of her body she could reach; then she scrubbed some more. She washed her face- and scrubbed again.

Now, she paced. Back and forth under the hot, steamy water that would usually comfort her, had it not been for the pin pricks that ran up and down her spine. She shuddered and wrung her hands and mumbled to herself.

"What the hell am I doing? No, better question: What the hell was I thinking? 'Oh, yes of course, just remember he's a psychopathic maniac!' That helped. What the hell was I thinking?"

Nancy ran her fingers through her stringy hair and closed her stinging eyes. She swallowed the lump in her throat (which she knew would lead to confused tears) and took a deep breath.

"It won't happen again- it can't. It's probably a felony just thinking about him... thinking about him _that _way anyway... "

Nancy let out a long sigh and started up another self-induced, self-directed rant.

"I don't like him. Right? I can't. Girls are supposed to like actors and stupid football players- and we all know that I am the near-exact opposite of a normal girl... Who's 'we'? There's no one else here..."

Nancy was becoming frustrated with herself.

"The only other girls that have little psycho crushes on the Joker are the fangirls at school. Sure they're nice and everything, but they scare me. Plus they only like him to be 'different,' or whatever..."

Nancy picked up her loofa and dapped at the scabs on her back. They stung.

"God, people like that frustrate me a little. "Let's all be different, which is nothing like all being the same!" That makes sense."

"I can't _like _him. I just can't. It doesn't make sense, first of all. Secondly, I've never liked anyone before in my whole life. Well, there was the occasional actor here and there, and Heath back at the High School wasn't so bad. Then again he wasn't the brightest bulb in the box either, now was he?"

Nancy sighed and looped her loofa's string over the faucet.

"It makes no sense. What the hell was I thinking? Why am I asking myself the exact same question over and over again? And, _why do I hear Mike outside the door?_"

Mike scuttled back to his room down the hall, and Nancy growled angrily at herself.

"I have to stop talking to myself. People'll think I'm a schizo or something..."

Nancy turned off the shower, got out, and realized no one had taken the time to grab any towels at Wal-Mart.

/|\

Gambol paced quietly behind his new technicians and glared at the screens in front of them. They had spent the entire day _tick tacking _away at the keyboards and scrolling over pages of information. The occasional blip of precious info was minimized and set aside for later recovery, examination, and use. Most of the information consisted of background on Nancy Alexis Webber, the Joker's latest soon-to-be victim. The poor girl wasn't even eighteen, and soon she'd be a heap of dead flesh. Clay at the Joker's sick, molding hands.

"Anything new, gentlemen?" he asked pleasantly.

The technicians flinched and started clicking away to bring up minimized pages. Most yielded the same results as the last.

"She's still Nancy Alexis Webber, she's still seventeen, she was still born on February 3, 1991, and she still goes to South End High School," the first said.

"We've checked Facebook, Myspace, Twitter, and every other little internet forum we could find. The only real thing we could find was a vague list of barely mentioned friends and relatives and a few bands she liked," said the second.

"Anything on the friends?" Gambol asked.

"Nothing much," the first started, "Just some names, relationships, little bits of information-"

"Any last names we can use to look them up?" Gambol interrupted.

"We could try that," the second technician nodded.

"Do it."

Gambol turned on his heel and strolled down the stairs to the main floor of his personal bar. The lobby was lit by a few cheep, green shade lights; the floor was old splintering wood and shaggy, shredded rugs; the walls were either wood panelling or bad wallpaper; the main room had a couch, a rug, a bar, and an old pool table. Gambol smiled at the bloody print of his face on the floor and grabbed pool stick.

"You ever gonna get ridda that thing boss?"

Gambol turned to the man sitting on the couch and smiled again.

"Never." He turned and started rubbing chalk on the tip of his pool stick. "Just gives me another reason to keep hunting that bastard like the mad dog he is."

The man on the couch shrugged and nodded.

"By the way, Jared," Gambol addressed the man on the couch. "How did Wal-Mart go?"

/|\

Robert glared at the business card in his hand. It had an address, a phone number, and Gambol's name on it in swirly, silver letters. He had thrown it away seven times now, picked it up out of the trash can, smoothed it out, glared at it, and thrown it away again. He shoved it aside, picked it up again, crumpled it up, and threw it away.

"How long've you been doing that?" Jim asked from the doorway.

Rob looked up, then back down at the crumpled piece of paper in the trash can.

"Long enough," Robert sighed. "I'm not doin' deals with the mob Jim... as much as I'd like to right now."

"We're working Rob," Jim reassured. "Just try not to do anything you'll regret."

Jim left Robert to wallow in his own misery and confusion. He'd glance back at the crumpled piece of paper and stared at his coffee; paper, coffee, paper, coffee. He finally hefted himself over to the trash can, picked up the card, and sent it through the shredder next to his desk. He sat back down with a huff and downed his coffee.

"Gotta trust Jim," he mumbled. "Gotta trust Jim."

Rob walked out of his office to get more coffee and smiled at Jim as they passed.

"Say Jim," he said. "How's the family?"

"Barbara's in Metropolis with her sister," Jim smiled, "Joker can't get to 'em there. And if he tries he's got Superman to deal with."

They laughed, and the air seemed to clear a little. Rob smiled for the first time in a week.

/|\

_"I think the late 70s saw the last of good horror flicks if you ask me."_

_"It still had all those gruesome, nasty slasher movies you hate, you know."_

_"_Last House on the Left_ was pretty out there with the whole 'rape, murder, kidnapping' thing."_

_"Things haven't changed as much as you think they have, Nancy."_

_"So I've noticed."_

Nancy went over little bits of her conversation with the Joker again and again; over and over in her head.

_...he's not as bad a person as I imagined... what kind of thinking is that?_

_"How long have you been done?" "Why'd you keep talking? Keep listening?"_

"What was I thinking?"

_... he's still crazy... I wonder what he looks like without the make up... why'd I kiss back? What's the matter with me... he sure is nice for a crazy person... why does he look at me like that? Why's my heart fluttering like that? I don't have crushes on psychos... men are idiots anyway... he's so intelligent though... it's so hard to breathe around him... what if I kiss him one more time? Just once. Just to get it out of my system. With my luck he'll kill me and I won't have to deal with all this anymore. No more of this conflicting junk. No. No, I can't do that. It'd be going against everything I was brought up knowing. WHY"S IT SO HARD TO BREATHE? ..._

Nancy leaned against the window and went over everything: the talking, the thinking, and (even though she regretted it) the kissing.

_... just one kiss'll get it out of my system. Just one! No. None. Thinking about it 's illegal I betcha... He's so demented... he doesn't hate me... he's a psychopath... he doesn't reel back in disgust at the sight of me... he pokes fun... he acts like a twelve year old... he's so attractive in a way... maniacal and such... he just stares at me... I wonder what he's thinking... What the hell am I thinking? _

_look back. look at him. look away. get up. walk to the door. can't breathe. just one kiss. just one. lean in. lean back. can't breathe. try and breathe. just breathe. try not to lose it. just a little closer. just a little deeper. lips and tongue and scars and paint and lips and scars and paint and tongue and- try and breathe. feels so good. feels too good. lost in the heat. can't breathe. can't move. can't tell right from wrong anymore. don't care. don't know what i want. don't let it stop. don't make it stop. just a little closer._

_can't breathe._

[/|\]

**Well, that didn't take as long as I thought it would. That's good though I hope. Taking another month to write another chapter would suck. :\ Anyway, hope you liked. R&R and all that jazz.**

**-Jess**

**PS: all the CAPS and lowercase "mistakes" at the end were intentional. Just wanted to make that clear.**


	32. Stockholm Syndrome

**Well, that last chapter was terrible. I admit it. It was just awful. Short and bland and blah. I hope this chapter makes up for it. **

/|\

"So, this time it was your fault."

"Yes."

"And, why, exactly, did you do this? ... again?"

"I don't know."

"Why is your hair wet?"

"We have no towels."

"We don't?"

"No."

"Your clothes were in the room right?"

"Yes."

"How'd you-"

"I ran."

"Oh. What are you doing?"

"Trying to diagnose myself with a mental disorder."

"Hm."

Nancy was laying her her bed, her fingers braided over her eyes and her still-dripping head resting on her dirty pillow. Amy rubbed the bridge of her nose and leaned against the opposite bed.

"How do you plan on diagnosing yourself with a mental disorder?"

"I took a semester of psychology in high school."

"That should do you a lot of good."

Nancy peaked through her fingers at Amy and went back to thinking.

The symptoms sounded familiar. They had discussed the same sort of thing in class. The class had done research on different cases. They had dedicated a whole week to the subject when someone brought up the diagnoses and tried to connect it to possible Joker-kidnapping victims.

"Look, when your done diagnosing yourself just-"

"STOCKHOLM SYNDROME!" Nancy shouted.

"You lost me," Amy said. "I heard something about Sherlock Holmes."

"Stockholm syndrome is when a hostage becomes emotionally attached to their kidnappers."

"Does physical attachment apply to that, too? Or are you a rare case or something?"

Nancy scowled.

"No, physical attachment does not apply to Stockholm Syndrome. What are you inferring? Amy?"

"Nothin'."

A sing-songy voice weaved up the stairs just then.

"Nancy! Amy! Your food's getting cold! Come down, now!"

It was Mike, and to Nancy, he sounded like a happy old grandma.

"We're coming Mike, just hold on a second."

Nancy and Amy heard something along the lines of "that's what she said," cast one more woeful glance at each other, and walked down the stairs to grab something to eat. Amy's footsteps somehow echoed disappointment, while Nancy's sounded something like shame and confusion, but Mike didn't notice. He welcomed them with a smile and started serving up pasta from a big pot Bruce had found in the cupboard.

Nancy picked at her food and gazed up at Amy whenever possible and found that at most times, Amy was glaring at her.

"So," Mike finally said. "How's yer' back?"

"Numb," Nancy said numbly. "How's your nose?"

"It stopped bleeding after a while," Mike said cheerily. "Why's your hair all wet?"

Nancy sighed and shoved more pasta in her face. Jason looked at Amy and they both spoke to each other without moving their lips. Jason would nod and look around the table while Amy would raise her eye brows and bob her head in different directions.

"Hm," Jason said after a while.

Mike gave him an odd look and got up to get more food.

"Where's boss?" asked Bruce.

"Hell if I know," Amy shrugged.

"He grabbed some food earlier and went back upstairs," Mike explained. "Said he had to make a few phone calls."

"Hopefully one about a car," Jason said. "Ours is a little _unfit _to be driving around Gotham."

Just then, as if coming when called, the crunch of tires against gravel was heard outside the door. Everyone immediately sprang for a gun -most of which were in the living room- and donned blood-spattered, cracked, and sad looking masks. A knock at the door made Nancy jump, and Mike couldn't help but chuckle next to her.

The Joker came stomping down the stairs a few moments later and gave them all funny looks as he answered the door.

"Joker!" called a very enthusiastic Scarecrow. "Good to see you!"

The Joker grinned at him, and Nancy noticed Scarecrow's shoulders slump a bit. He seemed to flinch a bit. Behind him stood a brand new van, white and still as conspicuous as their last one. Mike huffed a laugh and relaxed.

Scarecrow jangled a set of keys. "She's all yours," he said with what might have been a grin.

Nancy, personally, didn't see what was so terrifying about him. The mask would definitely catch a few people off guard, but compared to some things people in Gotham wore, it really wasn't that bad. But then she remembered the Fear Toxin he had released into the city's sewer system not a year back and shuddered at the thought. Mike had run in her house screaming about fire breathing horses before heading upstairs to hide. Robert had burst in a few minutes later. While her mother started firing questions at him he plugged up the sink and ran through the house plugging up every drain he could find. Nancy was given a shot and remembered Mike trotting down the stairs rubbing his leg. He was holding his ever-present camera and shaking as if he had just thrown up everything he had eaten that day.

Robert spent the next few days running around town, shooting people up with the Fear Toxin antidote and talking to Jim Gordon about finding Scarecrow. That was about the time that the Joker started his first few tricks; robbing banks and scaring people out of their wits. His deals with the mob didn't really help, either.

"We'll be taking the old one off your hands, then," Scarecrow said pleasantly.

Nancy heard the clunk of a near-dead engine and crunching gravel. Mike nudged Jason and they both headed off to the kitchen. Amy followed and gestured for Nancy to come along.

Nancy gave the two mad men one last look and turned to follow Amy into the kitchen- but she stopped in mid-step to catch the whisper behind her. She turned and blinked at Scarecrow and the Joker, who found it very amusing to make her uncomfortable by staring at her.

"What?" she snipped.

Scarecrow said something else and the Joker chuckled. Nancy's face flushed and possibilities ran through her head.

"Whad' you-"

"You helped with Wal-Mart, Nancy?" Scarecrow's shoulders shook with a chuckle.

Nancy's eyes widened behind the mask on her face and she tore it off to glare at him.

"Don't you even-"

"Calm down Nancy," the Joker said cooly. "Go eat, 'r something."

Nancy stormed away mumbling under her breath. "Tell me what t' do-", "-mumbling around like that..."

She heard another bout of chuckles from the door and flopped into a chair at the head of the table. Amy cocked her head towards the door and raised her eyebrows in question.

"Assholes," Nancy seethed, her face aglow.

"Well then," Amy concluded.

They ate in silence, Mike casting the occasional concerned glance in Nancy's direction. The front door closed and the footsteps upstairs quieted. The day ended with the sun and Nancy found her way upstairs, sleepy, full, and hoping for no more nightmares. She noticed that Victoria was already upstairs. No one had noticed she was gone. She blinked at Nancy and hopped up into bed without a word.

"We had spaghetti," Nancy said.

"Mm," Victoria replied.

Nancy gave up trying to strike up a conversation with a shrug and got undressed for bed. Amy was already snoozing on the top bunk when Nancy drifted off to sleep. A long, dreamless sleep.

/|\

Greg and Craig, Gambol's prized computer technicians, were hard at work tapping away at their computers. Gambol stalked around and smiled at the good news. Not only had his 'cards' been handed out like candy to cronies at Wal-Mart that night, but Craig had found some wonderful, information regarding Nancy Alexis Webber. Apparently, Nancy had some very stupid friends who found that it was a wonderful idea to carry a camera around wherever they went. The friend's name was Michael Charles Wilson, and he was somewhere in Denver , Colorado studying (funnily enough) cinematography. Poor doltish Mikey though that it would be a fantastic idea to record nearly everyday that Nancy and her friends spent together and post it on Youtube. Some of the videos were funny, others were of the night the Fear Toxin drove the town insane. More than one involved Nancy being jokingly kidnapped by one of her friends dressed up as the Joker.

Mike and the others had put together a series of lip-synced music videos, most of which ending in Nancy's noisy capture. In one video, Nancy actually knocked her disguised friend out with a cake pan. It was someone's birthday, and Mike spent an entire, staggered hour talking to people about how the color purple had pretty much become illegal within the last few months. Nancy spent most of the video holding an ice pack to her friends head and glaring at Mike, who had apparently planned the whole thing.

Nancy's uncle, Robert Maxwell Webber, kept glowering at the camera and scolding Mike every time he happened to saunter by.

"Well," Greg sighed victoriously. "Thanks to Michael, we now officially know where Nancy lives, breaths, eats and sleeps. We also know that there are constant running jokes about the Joker flying around in her little circle."

"Her mother was evil," Craig took from there. "The only real role model Nancy had were actors and her uncle; the entire student body at South End High School knows her by name."

"She used to be in choir and is still vice-prez of the English club," Greg nodded down the list on the screen. "She loved the color purple before everyone started freaking out at the mention of it and she loves music."

"Sounds like a normal teenager to me," Craig shrugged.

"What else about her family?" Gambol asked. "Grandparents, mom, dad; names, birthdays- everything you can dig up boys."

There was a flurry of tapping and nervous, concentrating noises that Craig had a tendency of making whenever the internet wasn't instantaneous.

"Robert Maxwell Webber: born 1966, Farmington, New Mexico, blue eyes, brown hair-"

"Monica Webber: Deceased, age 35, born in 1973 in Farmington, New Mexico, brown eyes, blonde hair-"

"Gregory Webber, Nancy's grandfather, he's dead, born in 1939-"

"Alexis Weston -later Webber-, Nancy's grandmother, murdered by gang bangers in Farmington in 1991, same year Nancy was born-"

There was a silence and more ticking as Craig and Greg searched for information on Nancy's father.

"Nothing on dad," Greg announced finally.

"Nothing?" Gambol stopped pacing and bent over Craig's chair to stare at the computer screens. "Nothing."

"Mom must've got knocked up in high school and dad took off," Craig said, pity lacing his voice.

Greg did a bit more searching and came up with nothing but a confirmed case of cold-footed high school boys. Craig dug a bit deeper, but ended up with nothing.

"Monica Webber wasn't exactly a model student either," Greg frowned.

"Drugs, low grades, barely passed most of her classes..." listed Craig.

"Looks like a classic case of an "accident" if you ask me," Greg put in.

"No pill, my guess."

"Just sheer disregard of common sense in my opinion."

Gambol wasn't listening, he was staring at a picture of Monica Webber; shoulder length blonde hair, chocolate brown eyes, a killer smile; she worked for Wayne Industries as a secretary; she seemed happy.

"How'd she die?" he asked, interrupting Craig and Greg's little agreement bout.

"Um..." said Craig, clicking though page upon page of family information until he found a hijacked autopsy report. "Says she committed suicide- jumped out of her daughter's second story window and landed on her head. Death was nearly instantaneous. She broke her neck and cracked open her skull-"

"Yeesh," moaned Greg, who pushed up his glasses and gave the report a good looking over.

Gambol leaned back and smiled. "Was she abusive?"

"Doesn't say so," Greg said after a few minutes of scrolling and clicking.

"There's always those cases though," Craig nodded in pity. "Poor, poor Nancy."

Gambol smiled again and thanked the boys at the computers, promising ramen soup and coffee ASAP. He trudged back downstairs and ordered a drink from the bar. His man Jared grinned from the couch and asked for an update. Gambol filled him in over drinks and a game of pool before heading to the apartment above the bar and going to bed. Someone saw Jared to the door and out his car, where he was shot for knowing too much. Craig and Greg jumped to the window and gagged at the sight of the blood spattered asphalt below.

Jared was shoved in the trunk of his own car and driven down the street, around the corner, and out of sight. Greg sighed with a shake of his head, and Craig popped his lips in nervous anticipation. They both sat down and exchanged shuddering glances before turing back to the computer screens. They were both thinking the same thing; thinking of the gruesome fates that awaited them once Gambol got what he wanted, once they become useless and filled with the information they had been forced to look up.

"L-like an old mob flick, eh Greg?" Craig stuttered.

"Y-yeah, Craig."

"MIT for this, right?"

"Right."

They glanced at each other again and Greg's shoulders hunched with a silent sob. He took a breath and started tapping again. Craig swallowed another lump in his throat and patted Greg on the shoulder. They both ticked away at the keyboards until they fell asleep and dreamed of going to MIT again, just to be shot in the middle of campus. They both woke with a start and chugged coffee until they were buzzing in their seats, and they tapped and clicked and typed until morning when the sirens went off in the distance.

/|\

Jim Gordon stood in Robert Webber's office doorway and knocked on the doorframe. Robert looked up from his paperwork and said, "Hey Jim."

"Wal-Mart was just held up by about three dozen clowns," said Jim.

Robert leaned back in his chair and considered Jim's statement for a moment. There was no doubt in his mind that it was the Joker's doing, but just the way that Jim brought it up was interesting.

"We've got the bomb squad scrambling around- cops from every corner of town, too," Jim said with a nervous fidget.

"Most of the clown were crazy of course," he continued. "Arkham escapees, ex-cons... all those other freaks. We found some fans, too. Freaky little teenage girls and a few boys who were a little on the happy side... if you know what I mean..." Jim's words trailed off in a sort of "hint-hint" way and he fiddled with a pen he found in his pocket.

Robert couldn't help but sigh into a light laugh and lean back in his chair. "Joker was there I'm assuming..."

"He talked a little bit about Nancy."

"How would you know?"

"Sources." And Jim refused to say any more on the subject.

"What'd he say?" Rob asked.

Jim took a moment to get the words straightened out in his head. He wasn't quite sure how to say it though-

"He... he might be taking advantage of..."

Jim stopped and rubbed the back of his neck nervously. Rob was staring at him as if he had just been slapped in the face.

"He's lying, Rob, and you know it," Jim said. "Joker doesn't play that game. He's toying with us- with you..."

Rob shook his head, said something about getting some air and walked out of the office in a flurry, nearly knocking poor Jim off his feet. Other office workers and detectives scooted out of his way and cast odd looks at Jim, as if he were the one causing all the problems. Jim sighed and listened as the front door slammed. He shoved the pen back in his pocket and strolled back into his office.

A quick phone call to his wife made him feel more at ease. They talked about how their kids were having a rough time with the move, especially with it being the middle of the school year. Barbara was having a good time talking to her sister and getting a few things out of the way. She had done some shopping and-

"I miss you Jim..." she had stuttered in the middle of her sentence. "The kids miss you- I miss you... when will this all be over Jim?"

Jim's face contorted in a sudden expression of pain and he took a few moments to consider his answer.

"I don't know," he finally said.

They shared a quick I love you before Barbara said, "Be safe," and hung up.

Jim rubbed his tired eyes and poked his head out the door in time to watch Robert trudge back into his office again, a pained, angry look on his usually ruddy face. Jim wished he had more to do to occupy his time when someone came in and dropped a load of paperwork on his desk. Then Jim wished he had more free time to think.

/|\

**Well, it's only been about a month (or 4 or 5) since I've updated. So, yay for me for finally getting something done. As you might have guessed, my stories have been postponed due to school starting up and my lack of initiative. The second and third chapters of my Harry Potter story should be out soon, along with this chapter and, hopefully some time soon after this, the next chapter for Pleasant Conversation. So please, stay with me. I know the people reading my story like it, and no one is really rushing me, but it just takes me a while to get shit done. **

**With apologies,**

**Jess **


	33. BAM BAM BAM

Nancy was laying on her stomach in bed, her face tilted to the side so she could kind of see through the adjacent window. The sunrise gave the entire room a reddish glow and honking horns could be heard a few blocks down. A faint frost covered the window.

"You up?" came Amy's voice from the bunk above.

"Yep," Nancy mumbled back. "What day is it?"

The bunk above moved a little as Amy shrugged and said, "Gettin' on into November my guess."

"Carol's birthday'll be coming up soon," Nancy sighed.

"Who?" asked Amy.

"My friend Carol. I go to school with her."

"Oh... I'm sorry."

"I'll get 'er a late present if and when I get out of here."

Amy huffed a laugh and climbed out of bed. "Your back still hurt?" she asked.

"How'd you guess?" Nancy grumbled.

"Want help?"

"I'm good- gimme a minute."

Nancy struggled to settle herself on her elbows and looked up at Amy, who seemed to be stifling a laugh. Nancy scowled at her and scooted up to her knees. With a pained sigh she finally swung her feet over the side of the bed and stood up to slip on her jeans.

"I'm not bleeding, am I?" asked Nancy. She turned around to let Amy look at her back.

"Not yet," Amy said after a quick pause.

Nancy sighed again and pulled on a canvas jacket that Mike had thrown over her bed somewhere in the night. Downstairs, everyone was either chugging coffee or chomping on toast and butter. Mike tried to shout a greeting as Nancy made her way down the last few steps, but just ended up spewing crumbs all over his shoulder.

"How'd ya sleep?" he asked after swallowing what was left of his toast.

"Meh," Nancy shrugged and pulled the jacket closer around her shoulders. "Where'd you find the jacket?"

"In one of the dresser drawers upstairs," Mike said. "I checked it for spiders already," he added after a quick glance of terror from Nancy.

Mike was sitting on the coffee table in front of the television, playing Halo with Bruce on their brand new X-Box 360. Jason was in the kitchen, fiddling with his computer while Victoria sat at the opposite end of the table, quietly sipping coffee.

"Where's J?" Nancy asked after a look around the room.

"I'unno," Mike mumbled.

Nancy looked at Amy and nodded towards the kitchen. They sidled over to the kitchen and sat down at the table. Someone had made breakfast.

"Who made the eggs?" Nancy asked.

"Mike," Jason mumbled from his computer.

Nancy grinned and remembered the last time Mike tried to cook: the fire alarm went off, Mike's family had to hire someone to get rid of the smell, the fire department got involved; it was all very funny in Nancy's opinion. She shoveled some of the yellowish mush onto her plate, snatched up a few slices of bacon (that Jason had cooked) and slumped into the seat closest to Jason, not wanting to come into any contact with Victoria. Jason was sipping coffee, tapping at his computer and consulting Amy for tips on how the program he was working on functioned. Amy sat across from Nancy, munching on bacon and responding to Jason's requests.

From behind her, through the doorway, Nancy could here the sounds of baited breath and clicking controller buttons as Bruce and Mike once again continued their ongoing war against each other on Halo. Across the table, near the window, Victoria was taking long, slurping sips of black coffee. The window, Nancy noticed, was nearly completely boarded up save a few chinks of light that filtered through knotholes or breaks in the wood.

The entire house seemed to have cooled overnight, which made sense considering Amy's assumption about the month. Nancy drew her new jacket closer around herself and started shoveling eggs into her mouth.

"Hey, Nancy!" Mike shouted from the living room.

"Hm?" Nancy grumbled from the table, her mouth still filled with eggs.

"I didn't burn the eggs!" Mike declared happily.

"Or the house, so I noticed," Nancy grinned, swallowing her eggs and taking a long drag of coffee. "Unlike the last time you attempted to cook."

"Shuddup," Mike mumbled.

"Hey, J," Amy said abruptly.

The hairs on the back of Nancy's neck stood up.

"What're you two nerds doing now?" the Joker asked, pacing around the kitchen and helping himself to some of the overdone coffee.

Amy frowned but said, "Hacking. Coding. Computer stuff."

"I don't wanna know," the Joker insisted, gulping some of the coffee. "Hey doll, you're up early."

Nancy realized after a moment that he was talking to her and shrugged, poking at her eggs and refusing to look at him. The Joker noticed this very quickly and giggled. Victoria, without anyone really noticing, shot Nancy a look of deep, disgusting loathing.

"Didn' sleep well," Nancy mumbled.

"Didn't expect you to," the Joker sighed. "You bleeding anymore?"

"Don't think so," Nancy said, her face heating a bit too rapidly.

The Joker noticed this too and stifled a laughing fit in his coffee, the giggles echoing a bit on the inside of the cup. Amy looked at him then turned to Nancy, who happened to look up at that exact moment, and glared at her. Nancy looked back down at her eggs, ashamed. Victoria seethed.

"Say, what time is it?" the Joker asked, flicking back his own sleeve to glance at the most likely stolen Rolex on his wrist.

"Around eight," Jason said with a glance at his computer screen.

"Goody," the Joker grinned.

He pulled something out of his pocket that looked a bit like a car charger for a phone and pressed the little button on top. Somewhere in Wal-Mart, Nancy knew, one of the bombs they had planted had just gone off.

_Just like the effing ecstasy bomb that went off in my brain last night_, Nancy thought angrily to herself. _How could I be so stupid? I let it get that far... I let it get _that far_, and boy was it nice- NO! No, no, no- NO! Don't think like that! Don't. You. Dare. _

"Your eggs are gonna get cold."

Amy's voice cut through Nancy's thoughts so abruptly that she jumped.

"Huh?" she asked. "Oh, eggs."

The Joker giggled and swept back around the kitchen, taking a seat uncomfortably close to Nancy and leaning back in the squeaky chair. Nancy hunched further over her eggs, fighting every instinctual urge to completely smother the Joker with her lips. Sure that her face was bright enough to light up the room, Nancy shoved the last few pieces of egg in her mouth and got up from the table, taking her coffee and her bacon with her into the living room. Mike greeted her with a big grin and Bruce grumpily offered his X-Box controller to her. Nancy took it without thinking and started playing the game with Mike, blindly and without putting much effort into it. Anything to help her get the steamy thoughts out of her head.

At some point, she noticed, she and Mike were joined by Amy, Jason, the Joker (who, again, sat uncomfortably close to Nancy), and eventually, Victoria. Nancy broke out into a cold sweat, the hairs on her neck and hairs standing on end. Mike kept taking longer glances at her as their game progressed.

After a long while, Mike finally broke the conversational silence by turning a bit to the Joker and asking, "So boss, I got a question. I know it probably seems stupid but... how did you manage to stay out of prison or Arkham or wherever they were going to so send you for _three weeks_?"

The Joker didn't answer immediately, as if not comfortable about disclosing the information. But after about half a minute of mulling over, he finally answered.

"Scarecrow," he said simply.

"Scarecrow? The Fear Toxin guy?" Mike said, his head cocking to one side in question, though still staring at the screen.

"That makes sense," Nancy said. "Scarecrow seems to have enough connections to Arkham to start off with..."

"Mm-hm," the Joker hummed. "Ya' see, Arkham isn't like prison. When there's a riot at the prison, they wait about a day and start moving new cons inside just like that. At Arkham when there's a riot, medications have to be re-administered, certain crazies put in higher security rooms- stuff like that."

"So there's a bigger time gap in between times they can move in new patients," Amy nodded in understanding.

"Mm-hm," the Joker nodded. "All 'Crow had to do was scare a couple of crazies out of their wits, let 'em loose and watch the fireworks. That happened every few days- just to keep things interesting."

The Joker gave a sick little chuckle that made Nancy breathe in a little too hard. Mike cast a glance from the corners of his eyes and shrugged it off.

Nancy's heart was making a racket in her chest. A sickening BANG BAM BANG BAM was making her shoulders shudder- _and she _loved_it_. It made her made her breathe a bit harder and fumble with the controls. She suddenly felt like an idiot, losing to Mike, who stood up and started shouting in victory.

Nancy struggled to her feet and stammered, "Be back," before tripping upstairs and banging through the bathroom door. The faucet rattled a little when Nancy turned the creaking handle, but dispensed a gurgling stream of brown water a moment later. Giving the water a moment to clear, Nancy cupped her hands under the faucet and let the water pool-

"You seem nervous..."

Nancy dropped the water back in the sink with a yelp. The Joker just grinned at her and leaned against the doorframe. Nancy started panting and rushed to turn off the tap, which was starting to make ugly noises at her. She rubbed her wet hands on her jeans and froze, not knowing what to say or what to do. The Joker stood, grinning and licking his lips.

_BAM BAM BAM _

"What's up?" Nancy spouted.

_BAM BANG BAM_

The Joker giggled at her and shoved his hands in his pockets. Nancy did the same, but still couldn't manage to control her breathing, which continued to echo around the tiled room.

_BAM BANG BANG_

"You feelin' alright, doll?" the Joker drawled, taking one step into the room and nudging the door with his foot.

_BANG BANG BANG_

Nancy's mouth went dry- _'P-please. Don'-' 'Don't-' _

Straggled, barely moaned sentences started winding through Nancy's head again. Swimming images and the knots in her stomach- aching pleasure.

_BANG BANG BA-_

"What do you want?" the Joker hissed.

He was nearly pressed against her now. Nancy swayed a bit, staring up at him, tilting her head a bit.

Nancy didn't answer.

The Joker kicked the door closed and stood for a moment, staring at his reflection in the mirror. Nancy waited, hands in pockets, eyes on the painted face. Nancy caught his face with one hands and gingerly traced the long, ragged scar that ran up the side of his face. He flinched. She pulled his face around, staring him in the eye.

"You wanna know what I want?" she whispered.

He blinked at her. She wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I want this."

He had closed his eyes before their lips met, slipping an arm around her waist and pulling her forward, nearly off her feet. It was light at first, as it had been the night before; he pulled her closer, bit by bit; she pushed herself up on her toes, putting as much pressure as she would dare on his chapped and ragged lips. The pace quickened much faster this time. The Joker outlined Nancy's lips with his tongue and nipped at her bottom lip, harder and harder.

Nancy was melting. Her insides clenched and squirmed; her back arched and her fingers ran through his hair. Her lips trembled in longing, never getting what they wanted until the Joker forced his way through them. Their tongues rebounded off of each other at first, not used to unfamiliar territory, soon caressing each other and drawing out moans. The Joker didn't laugh this time, which came as a shock at Nancy, but frankly, she didn't care.

The Joker pulled away and started dabbing Nancy's throat with kisses as he unbuttoned her shirt.

"J-J-J," was all she seemed to manage. _This_ made the Joker laugh, chuckling darkly against the heated, flushed skin that stretched over a newly healed gash on Nancy's shoulder.

"About time we took out those nasty stitches, Nancy," he growled, nipping at her earlobe and running his tongue along the side of her neck.

"Whatever," Nancy choked.

The Joker licked and bit his way back up to Nancy's lips, where he stopped and gave her a moment to breathe.

Nancy stared at him, breathing heavy and eyes fogging. Her appearance was remarkable in his opinion: a delicious flush had washed down from her cheeks to her heaving chest, most of his makeup was smeared across her lips and down her neck; a pair of white-knuckled, shaking hands gripped the edge of the sink and a set of lust-misted eyes stared out from under a heavy hooded lashes; the collar of her unbuttoned shirt was smeared with red and white.

The shaking hands reached out and caught him by the shirt front, tugging him forward.

"More." The word slithered out, dripping with desire, their lips already pressed together.

The Joker leered at her, but the smile vanished at the look on her face, and he grabbed her wrists and pinned them above her head, shifting over a bit as to not bend over the sink. Laying one last, long kiss on Nancy's hungry lips, the Joker let his mouth travel down her jaw and up to where her pulse was pounding. He let his lips settle there for a moment, licking at the throbbing, flushing bit of flesh. Nancy started breathing harder again, air coming in short gasps accompanied by luscious moan. Her toes curled and her back arched, fingers groping for something to grab, to bring him closer.

He laid another track of kisses down her neck, lips resting momentarily on the scar tissue on her shoulder and down to her collar bone.

"P-p-please..."

"Please what?" The Joker pulled back up, teasing her jaw with his lips.

At this point, Nancy wasn't able to form any actual solid thought, so she simply resorted to wrenching her arms out of his grip and pulling him closer. Their tongues fought again, and Nancy started to make noises that drove the Joker farther out his mind than he already was.

The room had become extremely stuffy by now, and the Joker shed his coat and gloves to help ease the heat. Nancy sighed with the touch of his bare hands as they both wound around to the places where skin met stitch.

"We really need to take these off," he whispered. "They get in the way..."

"Uh huh," Nancy said.

"You don't care? Do you gorgeous?" he pressed his lips against her ear and twisted his fingers around Nancy's scars.

"Nu' uh," Nancy shook her head, barely conscious of what she was saying.

"Ya' know, I think we'd better go back downstairs."

Nancy's eyes opened a bit wider, never really taking in her surroundings.

"Why?" she asked.

"They'll get suspicious," he purred back.

"But-"

He pulled away and looked her straight in the misty eyes.

"We can finish later- when I get rid of your stitches."

"But..."

He leaned forward and caught her lips again, prying them apart with practiced ease now. Nancy immediately dissolved into a liquid like state that melded to the Joker's form.

"Later."

"Okay," Nancy said in such a pitiful tone that, in the process of slipping on his coat, the Joker grabbed her, turned her around and started kissing her neck again.

He pulled away with a shuddering breath and said, "That shit's addicting..."

"I'm bad for you..." Nancy said pitifully again.

The Joker grinned and pulled Nancy closer by the collar of her shirt, buttoning up the last few buttons and cradling her face for one last kiss.

"You're awful for me," he said, running his hands through her hair. "But frankly I don't give a damn."

Nancy smiled meekly and licked her smeared lips.

_God, more..._

/|\

**That was fun to write (mmmmmmm...). But anywho, hope you like it. Sort of bleh and choppy, just another dirty romance chapter that I felt like putting together. R&R if you want. Hope you liked the last chapter. **

**NOTE: Though these last few chapters haven't been as action-filled as others, the action (yes, both kinds) is on its way in later chapters. **

**Thanks for reading,**

**Jess**


	34. Long Live Nancy

"... and that's why I stopped smoking pot after my Junior year. Reg kept on, of course, but not me! Nope. I'm clean now!"

"That's some fascinating stuff Mike," Amy said.

Mike had spent a good fifteen minutes explaining a very compacted story about his Junior year in high school. Amy had leaned forward at one point for the sake of seeming interested and dozed off for a while while Mike yammered on. Bruce had actually been listening and seemed very interested in the story. Jason had retreated back to the kitchen and Victoria was sitting in an armchair glaring at the ceiling.

Mike tossed Amy the other X-Box controller and invited her to join him in, "another rousing bout of Halo." Amy very reluctantly agreed and proceeded to have her ass handed to her during their "rousing bout of Halo," after which she shoved the controller into Bruce's hands and trudged into the kitchen to talk to Jason. Victoria continued to glare at the ceiling, as if knowing what was going on in the bathroom just above their heads.

/|\

Nancy came back downstairs about half an hour after leaving it, telling everyone she had taken a shower, which wasn't an all around lie; she _had_ taken a shower. Amy, of course suspected her immediately and very quietly scolded Nancy in the kitchen while everyone but the Joker was watching Mike mercilessly beat the campaign mode on Halo.

At around 9:15, the Joker came back downstairs and grabbed another cup of coffee, gave Nancy a look that made her shiver and bite back and grin, and headed back upstairs, saying something about a shower and some important phone calls.

"He's on the phone more than any other person I know," Bruce said.

Amy shrugged and cast a look over at Nancy, who shrank away and ruffled her very damp hair. Mike gave them both a confused look, grinned stupidly at Nancy and went back to playing Halo, giving her a double take after about half a second.

"Hey, Nancy," he said. "You got a little somthin'." He ran his thumb along his jaw and nodded toward her.

Nancy very quickly rubbed away what was probably a smear of face paint and smiled meekly when Mike gave her the thumbs up and told her she got it. Amy rolled her eyes and gave Nancy an oddly sympathetic look. Victoria, on the other hand, was sitting across the room, having moved to the love seat, and giving Nancy a look of deep, deep loathing. Nancy just shook her head and took the X-Box controller when Bruce handed it to her. After what seemed to be just a few minutes, Jason stuck his head through the doorway from the kitchen.

"Nancy?" he said. "Could you tell J it's nearly 10 o'clock?"

"Sure," Nancy said, handing her controller to Victoria.

"I hope Rob isn't there," Mike said as Nancy neared the the stairs.

She stopped, her hand on the banister. "Me, too." And she was gone, footsteps echoing off the wood panelling.

"Who's Rob again?" Bruce asked from the couch.

"Nancy's uncle. He's a good guy," Mike said. "I've always liked him, even when he gets a little high strung. He's a cop so he's always a little tense, especially since the Joker showed up. You should've seen him during Scarecrow's 'Fear Toxin' thing."

"Nancy's uncle's a cop?" Amy said.

"Yeah," Mike said. "I didn't tell you?"

"You might've. I probably just forgot," Amy shrugged.

"Dammit," Victoria hissed.

"Heh-he," Mike tittered, having just blasted Victoria's character off a cliff.

/|\

Nancy knocked on the Joker's door, butterfly's afloat in her stomach.

"J?" she called through the door. "J? Jason says it's almost 10 o'clock..."

She knocked again and pressed her ear against the door, nearly falling to the floor when it opened.

"Shit, sorry," Nancy said.

"S'okay, doll," the Joker said.

Nancy didn't look at him at first, the steam coming from the bathroom catching her eye before anything else. Then she looked.

"What's up, doll?" he asked, not taking in the fact, at all, that Nancy was not concentrating on the words coming out of his mouth.

He was completely naked from the waist up, makeup-less (_Nothing wrong with that- nothing at all. Damn._), and still sort of flushed from the hot water. Apart from the bullet hole scars, little healed-over gashes, and what looked like cigarette burns, he was completely flawless.

_Holy shit- carved out of mother fucking stone- shit. _

"Buh?" Nancy managed after a minute.

"Hm?" he asked.

"Ten o'clock."

"Oh, thanks doll," he grinned, groping through the coat on the dresser for what Nancy guessed was another detonator. "What's the matter?"

"Nuh," Nancy shrugged and stared awkwardly down at the floor.

_I'll take one of those with a side of 'His Tongue Down My Throat', please._

"Hm-m?" he hummed again.

Nancy jumped at his voice and looked up.

"Not to focused today, are we?" he giggled, leaning forward.

"No," Nancy said, trying not to stare.

_The one time I'm really, _really_, attracted to the male form..._

The Joker giggled again. Hearing his voice and seeing the (_sexy, sinuous, dripping wet_) man in front of her was really very odd to Nancy.

"Y'know, there's no makeup to wash off right about now."

Nancy stiffened and noted the arm and hand that had planted themselves on the doorframe next to her head. Her mouth went dry.

"Nn," Nancy sort of grunted.

"NANCY!" someone screamed downstairs.

Nancy's temper flared, and she stepped out of the doorway, turned towards the staircase, "WHAT?"

"WHAT'S TAKING SO LONG?" It was Amy.

"Christ," Nancy hissed. "I'M CONVERSING!"

"Fine," came Amy's quiet replay.

Nancy seethed and turned back to the Joker, who seemed to be biting back a cackle.

"What?" Nancy unintentionally snapped.

The Joker's smiled dropped a little and he beckoned her forward with a finger. Feeling as if someone had just dropped a giant ice cube in her boiling stomach, Nancy shuffled forward, hands in pockets, lips pouted; like a kid caught in the act of tying a firecracker to the cat's tail.

But he just giggled at her and said, "You always look like you're in trouble. Think I'm gonna put you in time out or something?"

_I could do for a good spanking... wait. What?_

Nancy blushed a bit to obviously and scraped her foot along the floor.

"You're so cute when you're angry."

Nancy gasped a little loudly when he wrapped an arm around her waist and kissed her on the cheek.

"None until the stitches are gone," he whispered.

"Wha-? But-"

_Not even when you're all wet and sexy and not... smeary? Please? Just a little bit?_

"None-until-the-stitches-are-gone," he ended each word with a little kiss, leading lower and lower down her neck.

Each little kiss made Nancy's eyes shut a little more, wrap her fingers around his sculpted shoulders a little more, lean forward a little more...

"Just take them out now," she sighed.

"Nope," he pressed his lips to her ear. "Only when you can't take it anymore."

"Take what?" Nancy asked, knowing the answer already.

"I gotta get dressed."

"Already?"

"He-he-he."

Nancy sighed and pulled away- not expecting the Joker to pull her back again and full on the lips. She traced her fingers over the scars on his cheeks and stiffened when he laced a finger through her belt loop.

_There's that side of 'His Tongue Down My Throat' I ordered. _

And before she could really start enjoying herself, the Joker pulled away and closed the door, but not before she caught him licking his lips at her.

"Fuck," Nancy huffed. "Fucking tease-"

"I heard that."

Nancy stuck her tongue out at the door (inwardly hoping that the Joker would pop out again and catch it with his teeth) and walked away down the stairs.

_Pff. Yeah, 'Fuck' sounds about right. Ha. I say "rape" you say "me"._

/|\

"That took a while," Amy said as Nancy sat down on the couch.

"We were talking about Wal-Mart," Nancy lied. "About Rob- I was expressing my worry!"

Amy had just given her a look that very clearly said, "Oh, yeah right. You _so _weren't making out again."

"I'm sure he's alright, Nancy," Mike reassured her. "J started poppin' bombs at around five this morning, and every hour since. I'm pretty sure the MCU has figured out a pattern and kept everyone but the bomb squad out of there- but don't tell boss I said that," he added when the floorboards upstairs gave an especially loud squeak.

"Of course not, Mike," Jason said, having abandoned his computer to join the group in the living room.

This boring sort of conversation went on for the rest of the day and into the afternoon when Nancy and Jason spent some bonding time while making everyone dinner. Mike joined in after a while, saying he felt left out. After that, Amy and Bruce filed in, sitting at the table and talking about this and that while Bruce cleaned his gun. Victoria only came in after Mike poked his head in the door and told her to go upstairs and tell boss that dinner was ready. She flounced into the kitchen a few minutes later, he face a little flushed. She gave Nancy a very pompous look that said, "I get more than you," and sat down. The Joker walked in soon after, fully dressed and makeup clad. It took everything in Nancy not to groan in disappointment.

_Dammit. Why'd he have to put all that makeup back on? Oh well, there's always my suddenly exciting memory bank... Mmmm. There it is: my side order of- never mind... I wonder what J's real name is? I wish I knew, that way when he's gnawing on my neck I can moan _that _name instead of "Mmm, Joker." Though come to think of it, that's not that bad... besides, I can always try and choke out "J-J-J-Joker." He loves that..._

"Wake up Nancy," Mike said from somewhere outside of Nancy's Happy Place.

"Hn?" Nancy mumbled.

"What're you staring at?" Mike said.

"Huh?"

"You're doing a lot of grunting lately, you know that?" Mike said, sounding mildly concerned.

"I'm fine," Nancy said, shaking her head and sitting up. "I didn't sleep well. My back..."

Her eyes scanned the room as her sentence trailed off and she found that the Joker had left some time ago.

"Is that feeling any better by the way?" Mike asked conversationally.

"Yeah, actually," Nancy said, happy to change the subject. "Once it stopped bleeding it started feeling better."

"That's the way it usually works," Mike nodded. "It'll probably bruise really bad though, the glass went though a _lot _of skin I bet."

Nancy nodded and started spooning green beans into her mouth, hoping that her chewing would stop her from saying anything stupid.

/|\

Everyone was in bed except for Mike, who refused to go to bed until he had beaten the Halo campaign. He gazed blearily at the TV screen and fumbled with the controls.

"Fuck," he said for the umpteenth time. He had been shot and killed again.

"Mike."

Mike jumped out of his skin, "SHIT- DAMN- FUCK- WHAT? Oh, sorry boss."

The Joker leaned over the back of the couch and started laughing hysterically. Mike yawned and stretched and sat back down on the coffee table.

"So, what's up?" Mike asked.

"You know where Nancy lives Mike?" the Joker answered with another question.

"Yeah."

The Joker dropped the keys to the van in Mike's lap.

"Take me there."

/|\

Mike wasn't wearing his mask, which made it much easier to drive, even in his lethargic state. The street lights made him blink and the little green numbers on the radio read **12:57PM**. The Joker sat in the passenger seat, staring out the window and silently counting all the fire hydrants.

"So, boss, if I may so bold as to ask... what're we doin' at Nancy's place?" Mike slurred.

"Breakin' in," the Joker shrugged.

Mike stopped at a red light and cast a glance at his boss.

"Just 'cause?" he asked.

"You said something about Nancy's computer a while back..." the Joker let the sentence drop.

Mike chuckled and said, "I've been trying for years to get into her alleged "Porn" section. I really doubt she has one, but there's always been that one file in her videos I don't know the password to. I know all of Nancy's passwords by the way: email, forums, the security code to her house, locker combination- she always tells me I'm a really good secret keeper."

The Joker listened and laughed when Mike was finished, "Oh yeah Mike, you're a great secret keeper."

When Mike pulled to a final stop and rubbed his eyes, the Joker checked outside the windows and opened his door.

"C'mon Mike," he said. "I need that security code."

"Mm-hm," Mike droned.

The car doors closed with quiet clicks and Mike led the Joker around to the backyard where a spare key was under a pot of dying flowers. Once inside, Mike trotted into the kitchen and typed in the code. From there he turned on the lights and slumped into one of the bar stools at the granite topped breakfast bar.

"Nice place," the Joker said, giving the room a good look around.

"That's what you get when you work for Wayne Industries," Mike mumbled from under a pair of crossed arms.

"Where's Nancy's room?"

"Upstairs," Mike said, getting up from his seat. "C'mon."

Mike trudged up the stairs with the Joker trailing behind, looking at all the happy family photos.

"Most of these are of Nancy's grandparents," Mike informed him. "These last few up here are really old, or so Nancy says. They're from when she was a baby."

The Joker spared the pictures Mike mentioned a quick look and snickered at the little blonde baby gazing back at him from the picture frames.

"Nancy hates those pictures," Mike said.

"What for?" the Joker asked.

"'Cause it just reminds her of the things she'll never have again."

The Joker raised his eyebrows at Mike, but he wasn't looking. He opened the first door on the right and walked right on in, turning on the ceiling fan and sitting on Nancy's sloppy looking bed. The Joker stood in the doorway for a minute or two, first watching Mike doze on the bed, then staring at the opposite wall where a new window had been set into the old frame, new paint lining the edges.

"Nancy told Carol- and Carol told me that before she jumped, Monica beat her head against the glass to break it... then she- you know..." Mike held his fist in the air and let it drop, whistling, before he hit it against the palm of his other hand and made a splattering noise. "I guess there's still blood spatter on the desk and junk, like in CSI where the blood goes everywhere and you'd have to have, like, super CSI-Vision to see it. Have you ever noticed that they see, like, everything? It's retarded."

The Joker let him talk and just nodded, looking around the room again. He spotted Nancy's computer and traced the little Mac Apple on top.

"She'll want that- wait a sec'."

Mike fumbled around towards Nancy's closet and pulled out a laptop bag. He shoved Nancy's laptop inside along with the charger. He pulled one of the drawers on the desk open and grabbed an unopened iPod box.

"She still hasn't opened this thing? Shit," Mike shook his head. "She said she wouldn't use this one until her first one fell apart. I was like, 'This isn't the '50s anymore Nancy, you don't have to conserve ev'rything 'nd shit like that'. But no. She's just like, 'I know, I know, but I have this one so I might as well use it and this and that, and blah, blah blah'... Do you think I talk to much?"

"No, Mike," the Joker said as nicely as he could without laughing. "You just keep on talking."

Mike grinned and started gabbing again. The Joker just shook his head and started picking though Nancy's closet.

"She's got some cool stuff in there," Mike said, having finished packing some of Nancy's things. "She's got a scrapbook of all the newspaper clipping with Rob in them. I think there's some about you, too. I remember this one time..."

The Joker wasn't listening. He looked over the top shelf and pulled out the scrapbook Mike had mentioned, flipping through and finding a few articles about himself. Mike blabbering in the background, he skimmed through the articles, finding mentions of Nancy's uncle in every one of the articles. The newest ones were of himself and seemed to outline the rough edges of all his recent plots. Nancy had written little notes on the sides of pictures: 'Stay away from hospital', 'Don't go to the bank by yourself: you will end up with a grenade between your teeth', 'Note to self: don't wear purple, will get you shot. Ha ha ha.'

"...and she called me up at the beginning of the school year and was like, "What the fuck! Mike, you'd never guess what I got sent home for," and I was like, "What'd you get sent home for, Nancy?" And she was all, "My damn purple American Eagle jacket! I've had it forever! It's got the pockets on the inside and everything and it's all warm and junk-" and I was like, "Well, why'd they send you home?" And she was all, like, "'Cause it's effing purple! Of all the colors of the God damn rainbow the Joker could wear it had to be fucking purple- so now I can't wear my favorite jacket." She was totally pissed, but she got over it and bought a new jacket..."

"Uh huh," the Joker nodded, closing the scrapbook with a giggle and shoving it back in it's shelf.

"There anything else you wanna get while we're here?" Mike said, forming the first comprehensible sentence in the last fifteen minutes.

"Nah, let's beat it," the Joker said.

He closed the closet door and stood out in the hallway while Mike turned off the light and closed the door behind himself. They walked back down the stairs (Mike trudged), set the security system again, locked the back door, hid the key and trotted out around to the front yard and into the van.

"I'll drive," the Joker offered.

"Mmkay," Mike nodded, setting Nancy's bag in his lap and buckling his seatbelt.

As soon as they hit the main road, Mike was asleep.

/|\

Rob sat in his suddenly quiet office. The chain of explosions that had been going off at Wal-Mart finally broke at 5 o'clock in the afternoon. Since then, everyone had been on high guard, making the offices quieter, strained. Rob had spent his entire day, from 5 in the morning to now, answering calls and directing traffic, a job which he loathed with a great passion. Fortunately, when 7 o'clock rolled around and the sun had set, the all-clear was sent out and Rob could finally relax a little bit and drink is coffee.

After filing the last of the conviction forms for the freaks and geeks that had held up Wal-Mart, Rob settled down in his chair and played a little bit of Solitaire, which he was awful at. He played anyway, for a good half an hour at least, until Jim Gordon walked in with a funny grin on his face.

"What's up, Jim?" Rob asked.

"Rob, you've got to see this," Jim said. "I've just been by South End. Grab your coat, it's cold out, c'mon."

Rob almost protested, but thought against it with a shrug, grabbed his coat and pulled it on as he headed outside to one of the patrol cars with Jim. On the way to his niece's high school, Rob made every attempt to pry some sort of clue out of Jim, who just kept telling him he had to see it first. Whatever "it" was was driving Rob crazy. What could be at Nancy's school that could make Jim Gordon seem this pleased?

"It's just up here in the student parking lot," Jim said as they pulled in.

"Why is Nancy's car still here?" Rob said, squinting at the faint outline of Nancy's '65 Mustang.

"The kids did it," Jim said. "Rob take a look, it's pretty impressive."

Jim got out of the car before Rob did and waited by the passenger side door. Rob got out slowly at first, wondering what made the silhouette of Nancy's car seem so ragged. Then he saw it: tied to the radio antennae were roses and scraps of streamers; pinned to the windshield by the windshield wipers were cards and posters and pictures of Nancy and her friends; someone had hung a wreath of assorted flowers on the side mirror; and where the window on the driver's side was cracked open to let in air, more people had slipped in cards and flowers, which lay dying in the seat and on the floor.

"My God," Rob said after a long while of looking. "The kids did all this? The kids Nancy went to school with?"

"Them and some of the teachers," Jim nodded. "Great, isn't it?"

"If only she could see it," Rob said, a sad smile finding it's way onto his usually somber face.

"She _will_ see it," Jim said. "We're going to find her, and she'll come here with you to see it."

"God, Jim," Rob said. "I hope you're right."

"I _am_ right, dammit," Jim said forcefully, but still smiling.

Rob laughed and said, "You have a tendency of doing that... Say, you think McDonalds is still open?"

"Should be," Jim said, slightly surprised at the sudden change of subject. "They have that midnight-or-later policy now."

"Let's grab some real food before the sun rises, huh?" Rob said, taking one step back towards the patrol car.

"Sure thing, Rob," Jim sighed.

Casting one last glance at his niece's car, Rob settled into the driver's seat and turned on the headlights. The old car finally put into relief, Rob could see that someone (or a bunch of someones) had taken shoe polish and written "WE LOVE NANCY WEBBER!" on the front windshield. On the back was written "NEVER FORGET", "WE MISS YOU", and "LONG LIVE NANCY!!" Rob bit back a little watery smile and pulled out of the parking lot.

"There's no way she couldn't come back, Rob, don'tcha see?" Jim said, waving at Nancy's car. "And even if the worst happens, she's never really gone. Ever. There are to many people who care about her and love her."

"You know, Jim," Rob nodded as he turned the corner heading into town. "I think you're right."

There was a long silence after that until they pulled into McDonalds and were greeted by a pimply faced kid that said his name was Morgan Price.

"I'm in the English club with Nancy," he said. "When you see her, tell her I said hi, will ya'?"

"Sure thing, Morgan," Rob said.

"Have a nice night Commissioner, Mr. Webber," Morgan tipped his little uniform visor and closed the window as the two men of the law drove away.

"She'll never be gone," Jim said again. "Ever."

/|\

**Woohoo! Yay! I finished a chapter on time! Or, at least, it didn't take me a month the write it anyway. Hope you enjoyed (everything [half-naked Joker]), review if you want. You really don't know how much I appreciate your comments (the positive ones). Thanks for reading, I'll start working on the next chapter and such. **

**Thanks again, **

**Jess**


	35. Who's Your Daddy?

**To start things off, a twist.**

/|\

"What're those things called again? McMuffins?" asked Rob.

"I think so." said Jim.

After gobbling up their fast food at the station, Jim and Rob had taken another short recess in the break room, sitting in the sagging sofas and sipping coffee and chatting a little bit before the burden of work was once again thrust upon them. They did, of course, end up saying their good byes and heading off to their separate offices, but this time in much higher spirits, especially in Rob's case.

At around noon, after a short, discrete nap in the break room, Rob was playing another round of Solitaire (which he was still awful at) when one of the pretty girls from the front desk came into his office.

"Mr. Webber?" she said politely. "There's a-" the secretary looked at the slip of paper in her hand and went on, -"Dennis Meek at the front desk. He says he wants to see you."

"I don't know a Dennis, a Meek or two maybe..." Rob mumbled to himself before thanking the secretary and shimmying past her. Halfway down the corridor, Rob thought, "Isn't that the girl who knocked over my bookshelf?"

In the lobby, on the far side, closest to the doors, sat a very nervous looking man in his mid to late 30s. He was a little pudgy, with wispy, dirty blonde hair and green eyes. Rob approached him, assuming he was the Dennis Meek that the secretary was talking about, and held out a hand for the man to shake.

"Mr. Webber is it?" Dennis asked, shaking Rob's hand with a clammy one of his own.

"That's me," Rob said, shoving his hand back in his pocket with a nod.

"I'm Dennis Meek," Dennis said. "Your sister was Monica? Monica Webber?"

"Yes," Rob said with a slower nod, slightly uncomfortable with anyone but immediate family and friends talking about his dead sister.

"W-well, you see- Oh my," Dennis seemed to be sweating, even in the cold weather. "I'm not sure how to go around telling you this..."

"Maybe we should go into my office?" Rob offered.

"Well- I... sure," Dennis said.

Rob nodded a little unsurely and waved for Dennis to follow him. The frail little man seemed to jump at everything, gazing fearfully at Rob. Perhaps terrified of his size? Dennis was quite a bit shorter and much less muscular than Rob. But why would Dennis Meek be nervous about that?

Inside Rob's office, Dennis continued to stand, even when offered a seat, and never ceased in wringing his hands. All at once though, it seemed, Dennis stood up straighter, drawing himself up to his full height (which was 5 foot 11 inches, still shorter than Robert Webber).

"I'm gonna give it to ya' straight," Dennis said, something Southern tinging his voice.

"Of course," Rob said. "By all means..."

Dennis took a deep breath, "You see, I went to high school with your sister, Monica..." Dennis shrank a little. "We went out for a while, g-got intimate. Then, one day near the end of senior year- a while after we had broken up- Mon' comes up to me and says, "I'm pregnant!", and... Well, Rob- is it okay if I call you Rob? You see, the point I'm trying to get across here is that..."

Dennis coughed a little and started wringing his hands again.

"Your niece? Nancy? I- I think I'm her father."

/|\

Nancy never mentioned her half-naked encounter with the Joker to Amy, knowing the consequences would be on the edge of parental. Instead, she held fast to her story about simply striking up pleasant conversation with the Joker, insisting that, for once, they weren't attached to one another by the face. She went to bed that night, giving up her attempt to make Mike follow suit, and fell asleep very quickly, snippets of what might be dreams drifting in and out of her subconscious.

At around midnight, there was a scuffle downstairs and what sounded like the van engine. Nancy woke momentarily, rolled over and went back to sleep. At what might have been 2 AM, there was another creak as the front door opened and closed. Someone clunked up the stairs, opened the door to the first bedroom (which belonged to the boys) and shut it with a faint squeak and a quiet click. Nancy didn't wake up again until a few minutes later when the door to her bedroom opened and there was a soft thud near the desk. Nancy rolled over just in time to watch the door close again before falling against her pillow and drifting off to sleep. Then, when the little glowing numbers on Amy's watch read **8:11AM**, Nancy took in a deep breath, stretched out like a cat, let the breath out a little shakily and got out of bed. She pulled on her jeans and looked out the window. It was gray and swirly.

_It might snow soon. _

She grabbed her canvas jacket off of one of the bed post and stopped in the middle of putting it on. There was something on the desk. A bag. Nancy very faintly remembered the door opening early that morning, there had been a noise over by the desk. She slipped the other sleeve of her jacket on and inspected the bag, not daring to open it yet.

_It could be full of explosives that J wants Vic to plant, or toxins, or... _

"Aw, hell," Nancy whispered to herself.

She flipped the strap over the top of the bag and pulled the flap open. What was sitting inside gave Nancy quite a shock.

"My computer!" she shouted.

Amy yelped and nearly fell out of bed. Victoria sat straight up, handgun leveled.

"Whathefuxgoinon?" Amy sputtered, clinging to her bed sheets.

"My Mac!" Nancy said.

She pulled the computer out of the bag and held it up for Amy to see.

"Oh," Amy sighed.

Victoria groaned and shoved her handgun back under her pillow, rubbing her eyes. Amy clambered into a safer position on her bed and stretched, her fists brushing the ceiling. Nancy frowned, a little embarrassed about her outburst.

The door to the boy's room opened down the hall a ways, and someone went downstairs. Nancy looked back up at her roommates: they were asleep again. She slid her laptop back inside her bag, shouldered it, and made her way out the door. Downstairs, Jason was making coffee.

"What've you got there, Nancy?" he asked politely. Nancy had always liked Jason for that.

"My computer," she said, setting her bag on the little island in the middle of the kitchen and delicately emptied its contents.

"O-oh," Jason said, turning Nancy's computer towards himself. "Nice, Nancy."

"Thanks," Nancy grinned.

"When did you get it?" Jason asked.

"Sophomore year," Nancy said. "One of the last real Christmas presents I got from my mom."

Jason looked a little concerned. "I'm sorry."

"Don't sweat it," Nancy shrugged. "Our mother-daughter relationship had been spiraling down since I was 12."

Jason frowned and looked down at the computer. Nancy had plastered several stickers onto the top, and a little scuff mark was visible along the edge.

"Sort of rough with it, aren't you?" he asked.

Nancy smiled and pulled the box of her unopened iPod out of one of the side pockets on her bag. "Just a little. I used to take it with me everywhere."

"I take it that was you yelling earlier?"

"Heh- yeah. Amy almost fell out of bed."

There were a few moments of awkward silence, and Nancy opened the iPod box. The door to the boy's bedroom opened upstairs, and Mike and Bruce appeared at the end of the stairs a few seconds later. Bruce sat down at the table and yawned. He suddenly reminded Nancy of a very large bear. Mike, on the other hand, hopped up onto the little island and started ruffling through Nancy's bag, though there was nothing left to look at.

"I forgot to grab you a jacket," Mike said.

"What?" Nancy asked.

"Yeah- sorry. Me and J broke into your house last night and-"

"Mike! You could've been caught!" Nancy protested.

"I know, I know," Mike nodded. "But I got your computer!"

Nancy sighed and rubbed her eyes patiently. Amy came down then, ruffling her hair and blinking hard.

"Coffee yet?" she mumbled.

"Almost," Jason said.

The rest of the morning went on quietly. Victoria walked into the kitchen at about 9 o'clock and fell asleep again at the table. Nancy gobbled down some toast and cereal, chugged a glass of orange juice and spent the better part of an hour sitting in front of the television with Mike.

At 11:55, the Joker came thundering down the stairs and through the living room, pausing at the arm chair and shaking it all to hell, sending sleeping Victoria -the chair's occupant- screaming to the floor. After a quick fit of hysterical giggling as Victoria got shakily to her feet, the Joker took her place in the chair and stared back at the slightly disturbed looks he was receiving. Nancy disguised a laugh as a cough and tried not to look back at him.

"I had an idea just now," the Joker said once everyone had gone back to what they were doing.

"Oh, God," Nancy sighed.

The Joker leaned forward and punched her in the back.

"F-f-f-fu-," Nancy choked in pain.

"Oops," the Joker said. Mike gaped it him. "Anyway- how does blowing up Wayne Industries sound?"

The question was met with a long contemplative silence in which Nancy was doing a lot of sighing and back-groping. Mike kept opening and closing his mouth like a fish, Jason stuck his head through the doorway to the kitchen, Victoria shivered in the love seat, and Bruce was rubbing his chin, a grin growing rapidly on his face. Then, just as Mike seemed to have some words to express his thoughts, his phone went off. He waited a moment, smiled awkwardly at everyone, and pulled his phone out of his pocket.

"Hello?" he said. "Oh! Hi Carol! ...What is it? You sound really... _what the fuck_?"

"What is it?" Nancy whispered.

Mike swallowed hard and just looked at her.

"When?" he said to the phone. "Whadda mean "just now?" -Like, he just now showed up and- ... That's a load of bull shit! ...What an asshole- He did? He's not in trouble, is he? Good... Yeah- I'll talk to you later. Tell Anthony I said hi. 'Kay, see ya' Carol."

Mike hung up and sighed, shoved his phone back in his pocket.

"What is it?" Nancy asked again, much louder.

Mike licked his lips, rubbed his neck nervously.

"Mike, tell me," Nancy said, rising to her feet. "That was Carol- who showed up just now?"

Mike swallowed again and set his controller on the coffee table.

"You know... how you didn't know who your dad was?" he said at last.

Nancy nodded.

"Did your mom ever mention a guy named Dennis Meek before? High school boyfriends? Anything?" Mike said.

"No. Mike, _what happened_?" Nancy sounded shaken.

The room grew tense and quiet, Victoria bathing in Nancy's obvious anxiety.

"Well..." Mike started wringing his hands in his lap, rubbing his knees and flexing his fingers. "I don't really know how to put it-"

"Just say it Mike. Christ," the Joker sighed.

"Rob just found your dad," Mike stuttered out.

Nancy was quiet for a good two minutes, eyes darting to different parts of the scuffed, splintered floor.

"Nancy?" Mike said.

"I- I gotta..." Nancy turned around and started towards the stairs.

"If it makes you feel any better, Rob punched him in the teeth!" Mike shouted.

When Nancy's footsteps had stopped, the door upstairs didn't squeak, and another weird silence fell over the room, the Joker cleared his throat.

"So, Wayne Industries? Goes 'Kaboom'? Anyone?" he hinted.

"I think it's a great idea," Bruce encouraged. "A good punch in the face for Gotham. Some fireworks for your comeback."

"Thank you Bruce," the Joker said. "Anyone else?"

Amy shrugged and nodded, Victoria smiled, Mike gaped, and Jason nodded along with Amy.

"Okey-dokey then," the Joker said, hopping to his feet. "I've a very important phone call to make."

He left, and everyone else just stared at each other.

"That was random," Jason said after a while, and retreated back to the kitchen.

"I'm gonna go check on Nancy," Mike said.

He got up-

"Me, too," Amy said, getting to her feet, too.

They both walked upstairs and knocked gently on the closed door. The handle turned slowly, the door opening the same way. And there stood the tear stained face of Nancy.

"Oh, Nancy," Mike groaned.

He wrapped her in a hug and let her cry a little while on his shoulder. Amy stood off to one side, not sure whether or not to hug Nancy too.

"Why just now?" Nancy said, her voice muffled by Mike's shoulder.

"I dunno, Nancy," Mike sighed.

"I kind of don't want to know," Nancy said.

"But you know already, don't you?" Mike said. "You've always been good at stuff like that. Figuring stuff out."

Nancy chuckled and pulled away.

"Thanks Mike," she said.

"Yeah," Mike said.

/|\

Rob's conversation with Dennis didn't go well after his little story.

"You're just now coming forward?" Rob demanded, barely taming the rage in his voice.

"W-well, I just thought that it'd be easier to find her, n-now that-" Dennis sputtered.

"Now that what? Now that she's been kidnapped by a psychotic clown with a knife fetish?" Rob nearly shouted, reveling in the terror that filled Dennis's eyes.

"I-I-I j-just-," Dennis said.

"You'd like the publicity? Wouldn't you?" Rob snapped.

Dennis stood up straighter, hands still fidgeting.

"I would never take advantage of anyone like that!" he insisted.

"Wouldn't you? Then why is it that you only crawl out of the woodwork after Nancy's been kidnapped?" Rob questioned.

Dennis stammered inaudibly for a full minute.

"Gonna go to the press now? Claim she's your daughter and get loads of public sympathy?"

Dennis choked and tried to loosen his collar.

"I don't think so," Rob stood. " You can just pack your bags and go right on back to New Mexico pal, 'cause you aren't getting any proof out of me. No one's going to believe you without any backing. No one. Got it?"

"S-she's my daughter! I helped make her!" Dennis shouted.

"Hardly," Rob spat. "You were just about as involved in Nancy's upbringing as a dead cat."

Dennis stamped his foot.

"I will _not _be treated like this!" he said. "I refuse. You watch Webber- just you watch. I'll find my daughter if it's the last thing I do!"

Rob lost it. His blood boiled the same way it had when the Joker had his niece pinned to his cage. He moved without really knowing it, around the desk and straight towards Dennis.

_Pudgy little son of a bitch. _

Rob punched Dennis. Hard. The handle to Rob's office turned and Dennis fell out gripping the crumpled mass of blood and bone that used to be his front teeth and nose.

"_ROB_!"

Jim swept around from the foyer and straight at Dennis, who was gasping through mouthfuls of blood.

"What the hell's gotten into you Rob?" Jim shouted.

"That son of a bitch says he's Nancy's father!" Rob shouted back. "Bastard just wants the public pity!"

Jim sighed and told the stunned looking secretary to get a medic. Dennis started on about a lawsuit and was hoisted away by a burly man in a medic's outfit. Jim watched him go and turned back to Rob.

"What the hell were you thinking Rob?" he asked.

"I was thinking about Nancy," Rob said, his fists unclenching, his jaw doing the same.

Jim sighed again and beckoned Rob to follow him into the break room. He turned on the sink and washed the little smudges of blood off of his hands. Rob sank into one of the sagging couches and ran his hand through his hair. The water stopped flowing with a little squeak of the tap, and Jim wiped his hands off on his pants.

"I'm sorry Jim," Rob said. "I-I just lost control."

"I can't say I don't understand Rob, but did you really have to punch him in the face?" Jim said. "You've got to show more restraint."

"I know," Rob said, suddenly very ashamed about his rash actions. "He was just so... disgusting about it."

Jim stared down at the floor and shoved his hands in his pockets.

"Listen, Rob. You're my friend. You're under a lot of stress right now. I'm gonna give you a break, but if anything like... _that _happens again, then-"

"I know, I know," Rob nodded. "It won't happen again. I promise."

Jim nodded and patted Rob on the shoulder.

"I didn't do anything serious, did I?" Rob asked as Jim stared to leave.

"You broke his nose," Jim said, allowing himself a grin. "But he'll live."

/|\

Mike and Amy had left a few minutes ago, Nancy shooing them away and telling them she'd be fine. She just needed a minute to gather herself. That 'minute' was, unfortunately, spent wiping away new streams of tears.

_Why the hell am I crying? No one died. Not for a while anyway. _

The door opened and Nancy swiped furiously at her face.

"Hey."

Nancy looked up and back down again, hiding her face from the Joker.

"Hey," she said back.

"You alright?" he asked.

Nancy nodded and took in a shaky breath.

"Fine," she said. "Just... weird."

"Hmph, that makes sense," the Joker said with a little titter.

Nancy glared up at him and couldn't help but grin.

"Asshole," she said.

"Hey, I'm not the asshole," the Joker argued. "That'd be the guy who says he's your dad."

Nancy frowned.

"Sorry."

Nancy shrugged, wiped her eyes one last time, got up, and walked to the door.

"It's been a hell of a month," she said, rubbing her suddenly throbbing forehead.

"I'll bet," the Joker grinned. Then he leaned forward and whispered, "I'd be a hell of month for me too if I was the one making out with the guy in the purple suit."

Nancy laughed and smiled at him. He bit his lip and held his tongue. He loved it when she smiled at him. I drove him nuts.

"I bet Mike wants to play some more Halo," Nancy said, trying her hardest to change the subject without being to obvious.

She tried to squeeze past him through the door, but he stopped her.

"It's funny," he said, reaching out to cup Nancy's face in his hand. "The one time I thought you'd be begging for a smooch you don't say a thing."

Nancy gave him a very wicked little grin that made him grin back. She stood on the tips of her toes and held onto his shoulders.

"There's going to be a point where you won't be able to take it either," she whispered.

She ran her hands down his chest and grabbed the front of his coat. His arms shifted ever so slightly and his head turned by millimeters, but by then, Nancy was gone. She wiped her face as she walked down the stairs and smiled at Mike when he gave her an are-you-okay? look. She stopped at the foot of the stairs and looked back up. The Joker was standing there, his face contorted in a twisted grin.

_That's his 'come back up here and try that one more time and see if I don't totally rape you' face. He wants it. _

Nancy bit her lip but couldn't stop her shoulders from shaking when she started laughing at her own thoughts.

Nancy's snorting must have sounded like a sneeze to Mike, because he turned around and said, "Bless you."

Nancy smiled again and said, "Thank you, Mike. What was J talking about earlier? I was a little distracted."

"He wants to blow up Wayne Industries," said Bruce.

"And just when I was starting to like Bruce Wayne," Nancy sighed. "Oh well."

There was a long period of normal chitter chatter as everyone took turns playing rounds of Halo. Then, quite out of the blue, Nancy spoke.

"So, Mike," she said. "What did Carol say about my "dad"?" Nancy used her two fingers on each hand to make little quotes when she said "dad".

Mike, meanwhile, mouthed the word "Laser" and did the same thing with his fingers, laughed, and waved it away, "No, no. Seriously. She didn't say much really. She said he was kind of fat and short and flimsy looking-"

"Great, not only did my dad abandon me but he also sounds like a pussy," Nancy sighed. "Great."

Everyone but Victoria started laughing.

"You do have his eyes though," Mike said. "From what Rob told Carol, anyway. She also said that he was kind of pissy and when she was walking away she heard Rob call that Dennis guy a 'pudgy bastard.'"

Nancy grinned.

"So, does he want the whole thing gone? Or... what?" she said. "Wayne Industries, I mean."

"Didn't say," Mike said. "But knowing him he wants it all to go boom."

Mike laughed stupidly, then said, "I'm surprised you aren't on your computer yet."

"Yeah, and have you following me around everywhere, begging to watch videos. I don't think so," Nancy said.

"Just one or two?" Mike pleaded.

"And the porn section you think I have," Nancy said.

She turned to Amy and winked. Amy gaped at her.

"Please?" Mike begged, batting his lashes at Nancy. "Pretty please with sugar and whipped cream and sprinkles and crushed nuts and chocolate syrup and-"

"Fine!" Nancy shouted.

She tossed her controller on the couch and walked into the kitchen while Mike whooped with joy. Amy gave a worried look to the both of them when Mike ran into the kitchen and started jumping around in there. Nancy walked grudgingly back into the living room and sat down next to Bruce on the couch. Jason, who had decided to join the loud, Mike-induced festivities, stood behind Nancy. Mike took a place next to her while Amy joined her brother behind Mike. Victoria sneered at them all and stomped upstairs.

"Werido," Mike said.

"I'll consider the source," Nancy said, signing onto her computer when it asked for a password.

Mike bounced in his seat when Nancy opened her files. She stopped when Mike giggled. He stopped and pressed his lips together.

"Which one, Mike?" Nancy asked.

Mike scanned the screen for a second and scrolled down.

"Halloween," Mike said, sounding very much like a ten year old.

"That's not Halloween," Nancy said. "That's Anthony's birthday this past August. That was right before you left for, 'college'." Nancy did the little quotation thing with her fingers again.

"Oh yeah," Mike laughed. Nancy glared at him. "Play it- play it- play it!"

"Fine, fine," Nancy said defensively. "Just make sure J doesn't see."

"Why?" Bruce asked.

"You'll see," Nancy sighed.

She clicked on the video and another screen blurred into view. Standard video options appeared at the bottom of the screen and a 'Play' arrow appeared in the middle of the window. Nancy clicked on it and leaned back in her seat. Mike gave a little titter and leaned forward.

On the screen, Mike's face appeared. He was obviously holding the camera.

"Hey, guys," video-Mike said. "It's Anthony's birthday-"

"Aww, it was his birthday, huh?" Mike said.

"Shh," Nancy hissed.

"-and he's gonna scare the shit out of everyone at the party. See, it's a costume party, so everyone's dressed up and- as you can see- " Mike turned the camera to the house behind him and adjusted the focus: Nancy was sitting in the kitchen, dressed up as a rock star, complete with dyed mohawk. "-Nancy was invited. And what's our favorite thing to do to Nancy? Kidnap her of course!"

Everyone chuckled.

"Now, my friend, Anthony -the birthday boy-" Mike turned the camera to Anthony, who was wearing a very good impression of a Joker costume, and said, "Say hi to the camera, Anthony."

"Hi to the camera," Anthony said, straightening his purple coat. "You know, this suit's pretty comfy."

"Now," Mike said, turning the camera on himself again. "I'm gonna go inside first and try and clear as many people as I can out of the kitchen, if not inform them of Anthony's arrival. You ready, Anthony?"

Anthony gave Mike the thumbs up.

Amy, Jason, and Bruce were all laughing. Nancy sighed and smiled. Mike grinned at her.

On the screen, Mike walked up to the front door and told Anthony to hide in the bushes. Nancy's uncle Rob answered the door.

"You're late," Rob smiled.

"Yeah I know," Mike said hurriedly. "Listen, Rob, don't freak out, okay? Anthony-"

Anthony came into view and, off camera, Rob said, "Jesus Christ, Mike."

"Don't tell Nancy," Mike said, turning back to Rob, who was shaking his head.

"Alright, alright," Rob said. "Just don't blame me when one of you guys gets kicked in the pants."

"The blame's on us, Rob," Mike assured him, then he turned back to Anthony. "Anthony, you stay here- or- no, you come inside and hide in the closet or something. I'll get everyone out of the kitchen. Okay?"

"I feel like a secret agent," Anthony said, rubbing his hands together and trotting inside. There, he hid in the hallway closet like Mike told him to.

Mike held back a laugh and made his way down the hallway, whispering to each of the people he met, "Anthony's in the hall closet. Don't open it. 'Kay?"

Everyone would either laugh or give him a funny look, though none of them seemed to surprised that Mike was telling them this. In the kitchen, Nancy was talking to a sexy looking nun.

Bruce whistled and asked, "Who's the nun?"

"Anthony's girlfriend, Carol," Mike said.

Bruce made a very satisfied noise that made Nancy shift uncomfortably in her seat.

"Hi Carol," video-Mike said.

"Hi Mike," Carol said.

"Hi Mike," Nancy said.

"Hi Nancy," Mike said. "Nice hair."

"Thanks," Nancy said. "Only took me about an hour."

"Nice," Mike said. "Hey Carol, c'mere. I wanna do something for Anthony."

Carol grinned (Bruce made another noise) and trotted into the foyer. Mike walked down the hall a little ways, told Carol not to scream and opened the closet door. Anthony nearly fell out and Carol gave a very loud gasp.

"It's Anthony!" Mike said before Carol could faint.

"Jesus effing Christ, Mike," she said. "You too Anthony. Nancy is going to kill you. _Kill you_."

"It'll be worth it," Anthony said as a couple party guest passed by and laughed.

Mike leaned back and peaked into the kitchen. Nancy was wiping the crumbs off of a cake pan.

"Neat freak," real-Mike said.

Nancy thumped him in the chest.

"Okay," Mike said. "Anthony, you know what to do... oh, come on girls, you can do your fawning later!"

A knot of giggling girls had stopped a few feet away and were giggling and pointing at Anthony.

"We love your costume, Anthony," one of them said.

"Shoo!" said Mike.

The girls left and the camera jerked as Mike nodded to Anthony. Mike followed him down the hallway and into the kitchen, where Anthony had to jump behind the cabinets when Nancy turned around.

"What're you doing?" she said.

"Nothing," Mike lied. "Turn around."

"Why?" Nancy said.

"Because... I wanna see what the back of your shirt says," he said.

Anthony gave Mike a look that said, 'that was stupid'. Mike must have glared at him, because Anthony rolled his eyes.

Nancy, meanwhile was doing the same thing and turning around, fiddling with one of the cake pans. Mike waved frantically at Anthony, who moved very quietly to stand behind Nancy.

"Is that your t-shirt from the Def Leppard concert?" Mike asked.

"Yeah, actually," Nancy said. "It doesn't smell like pot anymore... why're you so quiet?"

She started to turn as Anthony wrapped his arms around her waist and said, "_Naaaanncyyy..._"

Nancy screamed and grabbed one of the cake pans off the kitchen counter. Anthony tried to duck, but was hit in the side of the head with the cake pan anyway.

Amy and Jason fell over laughing when a loud PONG! resinated from the speakers on Nancy's computer. Mike doubled over, Bruce pounded the arm of the couch with his fist and Nancy started stomping her feet, laughing with everyone else.

On the screen, Anthony crumpled to the floor, clutching his head and groaning. Nancy dropped the cake pan, which clanged very loudly against the tiled floor.

"ANTHONY!" she shrieked. "GOD DAMMIT! WHY'D YOU DO THAT?"

"Owww," was all Anthony could manage.

"You killed him!" Mike shouted. "Friend killer!"

He sounded a lot like the narrator from Mortal Combat.

"Shut up Mike!" Nancy shouted back.

The kitchen was suddenly filled with people.

Carol came forward, laughing, and helped Anthony to his feet. Nancy stood and glared at Mike.

"He's gonna have brain damage, Mike!" she said.

She opened the freezer and pulled out an ice pack. Mike turned around and looked around, people blurred. He stopped and focused on the group of girls from earlier.

"You can start fawning now, ladies," he said.

The girls giggled and for the first time, Bruce, Amy, and Jason noticed the bright red lipstick, charcoal black eye makeup, and whitewashed powder that was smeared across their faces.

"Fangirls?" Amy said, sounding a little disgusted.

Everyone looked back at the computer screen and laughed when they saw Anthony, now makeup-less , with an ice pack to his head.

"I pray for the real Joker if he _ever _tries to touch Nancy... at all," he said.

"When she has a cake pan," Mike finished for him.

Nancy laughed and Amy rolled her eyes.

Video-Mike laughed, and the video cut out.

/|\

**There you go. Hope you liked. Oooooh, Nancy's daddy's come out of the woodwork. Took long enough didn't it? Let me know what you think. R&R and all that jazz. **

**-Jess**


	36. Stitches

**I'm going to try and update chapters two at a time, every other weekend. How does that sound? Due to the fact that I only have a certain amount of internet during certain parts of the week(s), it may take a week or two for chapters to be updated. I was also thinking of revising (ULTRA spellchecking) my earlier chapters. So, if you suddenly find that chapters are being updated, go on and check if I've added chapters, but it'll most likely just be me ULTRA spellchecking my works. Thanks.**

/|\

Nancy was in a very white room, though one couldn't actually call it a room considering it had no walls or floors. It had no surfaces to speak of at all actually. Nancy looked down at her hands. They were sketchy and sort of cartoonish.

_I'm dreaming. _

She smiled and debated with herself about whether or not she should try and stand. Coming to the conclusion that there was nothing to stand on, Nancy continued to sit, hoping this portion of her dream would end soon. It was very boring.

Just then, Victoria sprung into life as if spliced into a film. She didn't flicker as much as Nancy did, but she certainly moved a bit differently. Nancy glared at her, hoping that this would be one of those dreams where she could just talk. She would tell Victoria what she really thought of her. But no words came no matter how much Nancy willed them.

Victoria sneered at Nancy, her pasty skin and thin lips contorted grossly. Nancy tried to say something about her 'piss yellow' eyes, but, again, no words came. So, Nancy resorted to sneering back at her. This went on for a long while until Nancy got bored and looked around. There was nothing to look at, so she tried to stand, and found that she couldn't. She felt for her shoulder but could not feel it, and the same went for her hip and face. She turned back to Victoria and shrugged. Victoria sighed and rolled her eyes.

_This is a very boring dream. _

But then, the dream was not so boring. Like Victoria, the Joker appeared, flickering for a moment then simply standing next to Victoria. Nancy smiled at him, but he just looked around. Then, Nancy felt something squirm in her stomach, and the Joker looked at Victoria. Nancy gasped when Victoria reached out and grabbed the Joker's face. He grinned and pulled her closer.

_NO!_

Nancy struggled against her dreamy bonds and started pounding at her feet, which she could not feel. She looked up, and for the first time, made a noise. She screamed. Victoria and the Joker were wrapped up in each other, kissing and holding and caressing. Nancy moved. She sprang to her feet, pointed accusingly, shouted something incomprehensible. The two figures in front of her didn't notice. Nancy stepped forward and regretted it instantly. She was falling. The stark white around her faded to gray, then to black, and Nancy was falling though an abyss-

Nancy woke up.

"NO!" she yelled.

She sat up too fast and banged her head against the top bunk of the bed.

"OW!" she shouted.

She fell back against her pillow, gripping her throbbing forehead.

"Son of a bitch," she hissed.

She groaned and closed her eyes, not daring to fall asleep again lest she find herself in one of her two nightmares. Her stomach gave a great lurch as her senses rattled awake. Above her, Amy mumbled and turned over. Nancy sighed. She turned over on her side and stared at Victoria. She let her thoughts go free.

_Fucking pasty bitch. How the hell did you weasel your way into my fucking dreams, too? _

Nancy took a long breath in and sat up, let the breath out. She swung her feet over the edge of her bed and stood up, reaching back to gingerly feel at her back. It was dry. Nancy sighed in relief and pulled on her jeans and jacket. She gently pulled on Amy's wrist and checked her watch. **7:34AM**

Nancy nodded and put her shoes on. The house was freezing. A look outside told her why: it had snowed. Nancy smiled and made for the door, taking a full minute to direct hateful, disgusted thoughts at Victoria, who was still asleep. The hall was colder than the bedroom, and Nancy rubbed her hands together as she walked down the stairs and into the kitchen. No one else was awake yet. She settled into a chair at the table and tapped her fingers against the wood. After a moment of that, she got up and started to make coffee.

While the black mixture started to drip into the pot, Nancy stared through the little chinks in the wooden boards that covered the kitchen window. Outside, white, powdery snowdrifts had gathered in front of buildings and on the sides of the road. The coffee pot gurgled.

"You're up early."

Nancy turned and smiled at Jason, who was pulling on a jacket.

"Hi, Jason," she said. "Coffee's almost done."

"Good," Jason said.

He looked paler to Nancy.

"Are you feeling okay, Jason?" she said.

"Me? Oh, I'm fine," he said. "Why do you ask?"

"You look pale is all," Nancy said.

"Oh," Jason said. He frowned. "Are you okay? You look a bit pale yourself."

Nancy swallowed. "Bad dream."

"Amy's told me about some of your bad dreams," Jason said. "Are you sure you're alright?"

Nancy nodded. "I was... in a room. I was falling."

She turned to the window again.

"I hate those," Jason said, his tone telling Nancy he knew there was more to her dream than just falling.

Nancy nodded and licked her lips. "Did we get any Chapstick at Wal-Mart?"

"I think Bruce might've," Jason said. "I'd have to ask... Nancy?"

"Hm?" Nancy asked.

She was suddenly very nervous. Jason wasn't stupid, he talked a lot with Amy...

"...Nothing," Jason said. "Coffee?"

Nancy sighed and smiled at him, "Yeah. Thanks."

They both sat at the table, not saying much.

"Mike doesn't know," Jason said.

Nancy looked up to quickly and her neck popped. She understood, and frowned.

"But you do?" Nancy said.

Jason nodded. "Sorry."

"Just don't tell anyone? Please? I don't know what I'd do with myself," Nancy said, biting her lip.

"I promise," Jason said. "It's just between you, the Joker, Amy and I."

"What is?"

Nancy and Jason looked up. It was Mike, looked bed-headed and drowsy.

"A secret," Nancy said. "You'll never know."

"Damn," Mike said.

"I'll tell you on my deathbed, Mike. How's that sound?" Nancy sighed, inwardly knowing that she wasn't joking.

"Sounds good to me," Mike nodded.

He laughed and helped himself to some coffee.

At 8 o'clock, the kitchen was full. Amy and Victoria had come in at around 7:50, and Bruce five minutes later. Nancy passed out coffee, feeling very much like a waitress as everyone else sat around and talked. At 8:30, as was Mike's habit, he invited everyone into the living room for another 'rousing bout of Halo'.

"I wish you would stop calling it that," Amy frowned. "It's only rousing for you."

"That's because I win," Mike smiled.

And he did.

At 9 o'clock, Nancy was sitting in the kitchen, refilling her coffee mug when someone tugged her hair.

"What?" she snapped.

The Joker giggled at her, "Sorry doll. You look-"

"Listen," Nancy interrupted. She, very quietly, and with much over-the-shoulder-checking, told him her dream, adding a few colorful words to make her point. "...and then I woke up and hit my head- and you have to take my stitches out _now_."

The Joker giggled at her as Mike walked in and said, "Hey boss!"

The Joker ignored him and swung his arm around Nancy's shoulder, still giggling.

"You're funny, you know that?" he said. Nancy frowned and mouthed the word "now". The Joker went on, "Alright, alright, I'll take 'em out, but you know..."

"Can I watch?"

/|\

Mike shifted around a little uneasily and plopped himself down into one of the chairs that were scattered around the Joker's room. Nancy glared at him when he wasn't looking and cast more than one dirty look at the Joker even when he was looking straight at her.

_Why the hell would he let Mike watch? _she seethed to herself.

Mike grinned stupidly at her and looked around the room. Nancy smiled a little too, not really being able to be mad at him for too long.

"Sit."

Nancy sat where the Joker told her to and whistled through her teeth until Mike told her to shut up. The Joker sat down across from her and pulled her shirt away from her shoulder. Nancy could hear Mike stiffen next to her and she turned to him as best she could and smiled. Mike smiled back and leaned back in his chair.

"It's not gonna hurt," the Joker told her, catching her attention. "But it's gonna feel... weird."

Nancy turned to glare at him, but he only giggled and used a tiny pair of scissors to snip her stitches.

"I had to get stitches once," Mike said, hoping to stir up some kind of conversation. "I was... 10 I think. I fell out of the back of my aunts truck and hit my chin on a rock. I don't have a scar anymore, but it hurt like hell when it happened."

"I had to get stitches once, too," the Joker said. Nancy saw him grin. "Or twice. Or a dozen times."

Mike made an uncomfortable popping noise with his lips and shuffled his feet.

"I was kidding Mike," the Joker giggled at him. "Bein' an asshole."

"Surprise, surprise," Nancy sighed.

The Joker pulled one of her stitches and Nancy yelped at the uncomfortable feeling. It didn't feel like lips or tongue or teeth at all. It didn't feel like her brand of weird. I kind of hurt.

"You said it wouldn't hurt," Nancy accused.

The Joker shrugged and pulled another stitch, making Nancy wince. This went on for a good five minutes until the Joker told her to turn around. Mike frowned at the little stitches on the floor and back up at Nancy, who was looking increasingly pained. While the Joker pulled out the last of Nancy's shoulder stitches, Mike tried to strike up a conversation again.

"How was Katie doing when you left?" he asked.

Nancy smirked. Katie Boat was a student at South End and a member of the high school swim team. Nancy had been on the swim team for a while too, during her freshman year. She had gone to state with a relay and called it quits, focusing on her academics instead. Sometimes she regretted leaving the team and all the people, but then she read some of the scholarships that came in the mail and the regret went away.

"Still gay," Nancy smiled.

Another thing about Katie: she was a lesbian.

"Still fawning for you?" said Mike with a giggle.

Nancy stuck her tongue out at him. Katie had fallen in love with Nancy when she joined the swim team. And though Katie had never committed herself to converting anyone to homosexuality, she did swear that someday she would make Nancy a lesbian. Nancy laughed at the thought and licked her lips, which were still very dry from not having Chapstick.

"She's still very clingy, if that's what your asking," Nancy answered.

Mike laughed. Nancy knew that Mike would have done anything for her to have gone out with Katie. She also knew that the only reason he wanted them to go out was so that he could record them and post the videos on Youtube, as he did with all of Nancy's most embarrassing moments. Mike had had his trusty camera since his freshman year of high school and had carried it around ever since.

"Up, blondie. Time for the hip," the Joker told her. She could hear him grin.

Mike shot to his feet and coughed.

"I'm just gonna... be- you know- downstairs and stuff," he mumbled. "I'll uh, come back later, 'r something."

Mike coughed again and swaggered out the door, closing it behind him. Nancy watched him leave with a perplexed look on her face- the look was quickly replaced with a look a shock when two hands grabbed her by the waist and spun her around. Nancy grabbed the Joker by the shoulders.

"Now, you don't really think that your dreams are real? Do you, doll?" he cooed against her lips.

Nancy swallowed and barely managed to stammer something inaudible. The Joker giggled and kissed her on the cheek, then knelt down and-

"No-_o_-ot wasting anytime with this are we?" Nancy sputtered as the Joker stared undoing her pants.

The Joker didn't answer, but started pulling stitches. Nancy winced and bit her lip, grabbed onto one of the posts on the Joker's bed.

"Kind of unpleasant," she coughed.

"But done."

The Joker stood and licked his lips at her, holding the little strips of stitches in his open hand. He tossed them over his shoulder and threw his scissors on the table before grabbing Nancy by the waist and doing up her pants up for her again.

"Most guys like to _un_dress girls, you know," she pointed out.

"Mm, but I like dressing my little toy," the Joker chuckled.

His hands moved up to cradle her face. Nancy grabbed his tie and pulled him closer, cocked her head to one side. A rush and tingle washed up from Nancy's stomach and up her chest.

_God close- so close- just a little more- just kiss me- just-_

_BAM BAM BAM _

"BOSS! BOSS, SCARECROW'S HERE WITH SOME TRUCK DRIVER GUY!"

Nancy and the Joker looked at each other a second before the Joker growled against her lips and pulled back. Nancy sighed in huge disappointment and resignation and sat back down in her chair. The Joker threw the door open and asked Mike very pleasantly what the hell he was talking about.

"Scarecrow's here with some truck driver guy," Mike repeated. "Says they have the truck all ready for tomorrow night. Something about maintenance people and security and shit. Said he wanted to talk to you."

The Joker gave a very exaggerated sigh and turned around to Nancy. "Come on."

She followed him downstairs and into the living room where Amy gave Nancy a look of expectancy. Nancy shrugged and Amy motioned for her to follow her into the kitchen.

"You better be happy I don't kill you _right now_," she heard the Joker glower at Scarecrow. "I was just about t-"

He cut off as he shoved a very confused (and slightly terrified) Scarecrow up the stairs. Mike, Bruce, Jason and Victoria looked up from what they were doing and at the ragged looking man that stood in the front door. He wore a smelly, sweat-stained flannel button down, a pair of jeans that looked as if they had been dragged across an oil changing station, and a ball cap with the words "JOHN DEERE" printed in dingy yellow letters across the front. He was holding the butt of a dead cigarette between his chalky lips and everyone was quite sure that the only hair left on his head was the the fluff that stuck out at odd angles from beneath the hat's edge.

Nancy, who had not taken notice of the man, was in the kitchen with Amy having a very quiet conversation about what had happened in the Joker's room not two minutes previous.

"You look pissed," Amy commented.

"I am pissed," Nancy confirmed.

"Did he try and-?" Amy started.

"No," Nancy interrupted. "That's the point. Nothing happened."

Amy stood for a second, elbows bend and hands open, looking confused and clueless. Nancy flicked her wrist in little circles, hoping that the turning motion would help the gears in Amy's head follow suit. Then it clicked.

"Oh! _Nothing happened_. That's why you're pissed!" Amy declared.

Nancy would have applauded her had it not been for the fact that it would have drawn to much attention to the kitchen. Instead, she just nodded very slowly to exaggerate Amy's slowness to comprehend.

"Don't make fun of me!" Amy said,

Nancy smiled a little and apologized, then asked, "Who's the creepy guy sitting in the living room?"

Amy, not having noticed the man until now, simply shrugged and caught Bruce's attention.

"Who?" she mouthed, gesturing towards the crusty truck driver who hadn't moved since entering the house. Bruce shrugged. Amy shrugged too and waved it away. "Wanna make lunch?"

"Sure," Nancy nodded.

They pulled out some cans of Campbell's Chunky soup and stewed them up in a big pot they found in one of the kitchen's many cupboards. Bruce came in after a while and caught both of them in a bear hug.

"I love Chunky!" he explained.

Nancy laughed and Amy attempted to correct the position of her spine. Mike came in, too, followed soon after by Jason and Victoria. Nancy peeked into the living room and found that the man had moved from the door to the couch. Someone tapped her on the shoulder.

"You think you should wear your mask?" It was Mike.

"Nah," Nancy said with a shake of her head. "If Scarecrow hired 'im then he probably won't give a damn about who I am. And if worst comes to worst, the poor bastard'll end up dead anyway."

Mike hissed through his teeth in apprehension and pity and asked Nancy how her hip felt.

"Sorry I left," he said. "Just felt uncomfortable- you know?"

Nancy felt something bounce in her stomach. Mike was worried about her; he might figure things out; he might get defensive-

"Just as long as they're alright, right?" Mike asked. "J knows what he's doing. I trust him... a little."

Nancy smiled, but felt a pang of treason in the back of her mind.

_He trusts me. I'm lying to him. He trusts the both of us. God, this feels so wrong._

"You think John Deere'll want some soup?" Mike asked, yanking Nancy from her thoughts.

"Huh?" Nancy asked.

"Dude in the living room. You think he'll want some soup?" Mike repeated.

"Oh, I dunno. Go ask," Nancy said.

Mike blinked at her for a second, then shrugged and nodded.

"Hey," Mike said, sticking his head through the doorway between the kitchen and the living room. "You want some Chunky soup? We got some."

The trucker made a noise that sounded a bit like, "merf," which everyone took as a "no". Nancy shrugged at Mike and poured herself some soup before picking up two more bowls and filling them up, too. No one asked what she was doing when she walked out of the kitchen and up the stairs. Down the hallway and to the Joker's room, Nancy kicked the door.

"Room service!" she called, then grinned.

"Mike, I'm a little busy," the Joker called back.

"You always assume it's Mike, don't you?" Nancy bit her tongue.

The door flew open and the look of impatience quickly melted off the Joker's face.

"Soup?" Nancy offered holding up the bowls. "One for both of you."

"You're so sweet, Nancy," Scarecrow said from the desk across the room.

The Joker glared back at him and took the bowls. He licked his scars at Nancy and closed the door, leaving Nancy in the hallway to sigh and feel needy.

/|\

While minor legal matters were being dealt with in the case of Nancy's "father", Rob was spending quite a lot of time scanning data bases. He was digging up dirt on Dennis Meek, the man who claimed to be the father of his only niece. Not finding much on Dennis besides a MIP (minor in possession) when he was 17, Rob retired to playing Solitaire. He wondered now, why he kept playing the stupid game. He was still awful at it.

/|\

The news had leaked about Nancy Webber's alleged father, Dennis Meek. Now everyone knew, even Gambol. When the news had come, it had been a shock, a surprise, and an advantage. Gambol set off to find everything he could about Dennis Meek. Greg and Craig were made to stay up until the early hours of the morning, researching, finding nothing, backtracking, breaking internet laws, pushing down firewalls. They didn't find much, for Dennis wasn't a very remarkable person.

"What do you have for me?" Gambol asked at about 5:30 in the morning.

Craig jerked awake, having dozed off, and pulled an array of web pages and school records.

"Sort of like Nancy's mom," he slurred. "Bad grades, bad breaks, bad friends. Charged with a MIP when he was 17. Works for a car insurance company down in Hobbs, New Mexico now."

"Turns out that Rob doesn't like him much," Greg put in. "Punched him in the face and called him a fat bastard 'r something."

Gambol smiled, then winced when the scar on his face strained and pulled. He touched the ragged line of scar tissue down his face and grimaced. This was the reason he was doing this. The thing the Joker had turned him into, the monstrous-looking thing he had become, was the reason he was doing all of this.

It was the reason he had shot up South End: it was a scare tactic. It was the reason he was tracking down the people Nancy knew. It was the reason he wanted the Joker dead. Dead and bleeding and weak.

Gambol had been watching the news for the past month, since Nancy's disappearance. Waiting for that sickening video of her death to be broadcasted across the city, that blood curdling laugh ravaging Gotham as it had just a few months earlier. But the video never came. Nancy hadn't died, because Gambol would have known. The Joker was not one for subtlety. He wasn't one to hide things, and if it was hidden, it wasn't for too long. When the video, the audio, the picture at least had not come in, Gambol began to think. He made connections. They were absurd and disgusting and farfetched, but they were connections; the Joker was holding Nancy for himself, for something. Gambol didn't want to imagine what, but the idea was there.

It was always the thought that counted.

"Thank you boys," Gambol said graciously to his computer technicians. "I'll have some cots brought up. You two look exhausted."

He smiled at them both, and they smiled back. But only so, and in fear more than respect. Gambol left, down the stairs and through the hall of shriveled wallpaper and moth eaten rugs. In the bar, he asked the bartender for a dry martini and slumped into the nearest couch, which squealed in complaint.

"When this is all over," he told the bartender. "I'm selling this shit hole and buying a real place."

The bartender nodded and polished an already spotless shot glass. "Just as long as I got someplace to work."

Gambol huffed a laugh and took his martini from the bar.

"How are things by the way?" the barman asked. "Working out like you want?"

Gambol smiled slowly, carefully, as not to pull the gash on his cheek. He had an idea.

"Yes, actually. Everything's working out fine. Thanks for the martini."

/|\

**Rushed end, sorry. Have a list of notes I'd like read, if you have the time. **

**NOTE: **

**-Will be deleting Harry Potter story. Don't feel like updating something no one's going to read**

**-FYI, two more TDK stories on the way (maybe, depends on laziness)**

**-To repeat, chapters will be ULTRA spellchecked sometime over the next few weeks**

**- I apologize for this chapter, it's sort of choppy and boring; leaves one feeling needy. Explanation for creepy truck driver in next chapter, don't fret my pretties. **

**-R&R and all that jazz, if you want. I LIKE REVIEWS (positive ones) SEND ME MORE. THEY MAKE MY DAY.**

**Thanks**

**Jess**


	37. The Freezer

**I apologize to those two or three of you who were following my Harry Potter story. It wasn't doing well at all, truthfully. Oh, well. Life goes on. And so does the story. So on we go. **

/|\

"Well, _pardon me _for interrupting your rape session," Scarecrow rattled. "You called, I _graciously_ came over with what you wanted, and you shove me up the stairs and yell at me!"

"You did interrupt, you know," the Joker mumbled at his soup.

Scarecrow sighed again and fiddled with the frayed edge of his burlap sap mask, which he had taken off to eat the soup Nancy had brought them.

"You better pray to God that Nancy never tells her uncle what's-" Scarecrow started.

"She won't," the Joker stopped him. "She wouldn't dare put Rob through something like that."

Scarecrow shrugged and pulled his mask back on, pulling the drawstring around his neck and getting up.

"Thanks for the soup and all," he said. "Chuck's got the truck parked in an open alley down the street. He'll get you where you need to go- what you do after that is up to you."

"Money's next door," the Joker told him as he pushed through the door.

"Thanks," Scarecrow said.

In the spare room, he grabbed one heavy sack of money and made his way downstairs. In the living room, he bade farewell to Chuck the truck driver and the others in the kitchen. He strolled out to his car, threw the sack in the trunk, hopped in the back and told the driver to head back to the lab. The driver obliged and the car's tires crunched against the old gravel in front of the Home. The car turned a bit, then tore off towards the old apartment building where Scarecrow had been making his living for about a year now. He took this time to take off his mask and rub his sweaty face. Working with the Joker was a risky business; he could like you one day and hate you the next; you'd live, or he'd kill you; the deal would be set and made, and all would be well, or the Joker would arrange to have your head sent to the news station in a styrofoam box. Jonathan Crane let out one long, human sigh and slid his mask back over his face, donning his Scarecrow persona.

Being Scarecrow made him feel safe, secure. It made him feel empowered. It was _he_ who the people feared, not the other way around. Though with the arrival of the Joker came competition and another phantom for the people of Gotham to fear. The Joker had been an enemy at first, an adversary whom Scarecrow held nothing but loathing and distaste for. Now, the tables had turned and Scarecrow suddenly very outdone by the madman hidden behind face paint. Though, now that he thought about it, the paint didn't hide the madness, it displayed it; put it out for the world to see. The paint did what Scarecrow's mask did not: it screamed "I'M CRAZY!" Scarecrow's mask gave off the same sort of vibe, but in moderation in comparison to his purple-suited counterpart.

The car came to a hushed halt in front of Scarecrow's Factory. The driver opened the back door, closed it behind Scarecrow, pulled the money bag out of the trunk, and followed his employer up the stairs to the lab.

"Where you wan' it?" the driver asked in a thick Jersey accent.

"Just over there is fine, thanks," Scarecrow said, waving his arm in an indistinct sort of way.

The driver shrugged, dropped the bag, and headed downstairs. Scarecrow, meanwhile, took a seat in a lounge chair in the corner of the room and kicked his shoes off. He suddenly pitied Chuck, the truck driver, and wondered what was to become of him. In the back of his mind, Scarecrow knew that Chuck was disposable and would probably end up dead or arrested like so many of the freaks and fans he had sent off to Wal-Mart a few days previous.

"Poor saps," he sighed.

/|\

Nancy slept fitfully, waking every hour or so in a flurry. She'd sit up, breathing hard and in a cold sweat, stare around the room, and fall back on her pillow. Because every hour, every time she woke, it was for the same reason: the dream. The same dream she had woken from the night before. The dream in which she wished, for once, she was Victoria. At one point, at about 3 o'clock in the morning, Nancy gave up on sleeping and decided to go downstairs. In the process of putting on her pants as she walked out the door, she heard giggling. She stopped and buttoned her pants, turned around, grabbed the jacket from the desk, and slid it on. Quietly, carefully, Nancy made her way down the stairs, stopping at the foot of them and peering around the doorway. She saw her computer screen, but only a blurry image of what might be on it. She also saw Mike, who was holding the computer in his lap. Mike looked towards the kitchen.

"J. J, c'mere," he whispered loudly.

Nancy gasped a little and moved up one step so the Joker wouldn't see her as he swept out of the kitchen. Mike giggled and clicked on something. Nancy suddenly regretted telling him the password to everything she owned.

"Which one you wanna see?" Mike whispered, quieter this time now that the Joker was close enough to hear.

The Joker must have taken his time in choosing because when Nancy leaned forward to watch the two of them, Mike was bobbing his head from side to side like he always did when he was impatient. The Joker finally leaned forward a little and prodded at the screen.

"Don't poke it, dammit," Nancy mouthed at him. He couldn't see her, obviously.

Mike giggled and click on whatever video the Joker had pointed out, then said, "I've gone through and renamed a few of them for... convenience's sake."

Nancy gaped at him and frowned. _How dare he rename my videos? They're mine dammit. _She stopped thinking when the audio for the video hissed through the speakers. She knew what video it was.

"Hey, Nancy," Mike's voice said from the speakers. "Whatcha up to?"

"Nothin'," Nancy's voice said. "Just doin' some web sur_fin_'."

"Fun," Mike said.

"Mm hm," Nancy said.

"Whatcha surfin' for?" Mike asked. Nancy could hear the real Mike whisper the words to himself, then giggle.

"A website Carol told me about," Nancy said. "She said that some of the _fangirls_ had whipped it up."

"Scary," Mike said.

"Just a little," Nancy sighed.

"You think it's real?" Mike asked.

"I know it is," Nancy groaned. "I found it."

"Oh hell yes!" Mike shouted. The real Mike turned the volume down a little. "What's on it? Is it a bunch of fangirl fueled bullshit? Or what?"

"It's actually put together really well," Nancy sounded impressed. "I'm surprised at how many pictures they have of him. I mean, I'm on the net all the time and I've never seen more than one or two on the GNN website. It's impressive."

"What else they got?" Mike said, sounding giddy. "Any of our music videos on there? How about Anthony's birthday? That one was funny as hell. They got a fan-section?"

The video was quiet for a few seconds, then Nancy sighed, "Yes."

"Oh, hell yes!" Mike shouted again. "Gimme, gimme! What's it say?"

"I don't wanna," Nancy whined. "It's just a bunch of 'fics and pics."

"Pics? Ooooooh," Mike giggled. "Lemme see! What's the 'fiction like?"

"I'm not gonna read it!" Nancy protested. "You'll just record it and post it on Youtube!"

"Hey, I deserve a little payback for you making me watch 2 Girls 1 Cup," Mike argued.

"Hey, you started it with Anthony's party," Nancy prodded back.

"Anthony didn't have to do anything!"

"Yeah, that's because I gave him a mild concussion."

Mike sighed grumpily.

"I'll give you fifty buck to read a one-shot," he said.

"What?" Nancy said.

"Fifty bucks. One one-shot," Mike started to giggle.

"No!" Nancy said.

"Ah, c'mon Nancy. _Fifty dollars_," Mike sang.

The video went quiet again and Nancy peaked around the doorway in time to see the Joker's shoulders shake with a giggle.

"It gets better, it gets better," Mike assured him. "Just watch."

After a full minute, Nancy spoke again: "Deal."

"Yes!" Mike shouted.

The real Nancy, the one hiding at the foot of the stairs, groaned, then slapped her hands over her mouth.

"Didja hear that?" she hear the Joker ask.

Mike must have shaken his head, because no one came around to investigate. Nancy let out a very quiet sigh of relief and looked around the doorway again.

"Why are we doing this at 3 in the morning, again?" the Joker asked.

"Because if Nancy were around she'd kill me," Mike answered.

"Fair enough," the Joker shrugged.

In the video, Nancy sighed and her chair squeaked when she leaned back in it. The rest of the video consisted of Nancy's musings and groans of disgust or terror.

"Ugh," she said. "Don't follow... no you dumb bimbo... shi-... NO! Fuck! NO! Stop it!" She started groaning and her chair squeaked again when she leaned forward. The real Nancy leaned forward too and glared at the back of the Joker's head as he giggled frantically into his elbow.

Finally, as the video reached it's end, Nancy shouted, "Okay, I'm done."

The real Nancy sighed and crept out to stand a few feet behind the Joker, who gave her a double take and turned around completely to see her.

"-keep your money, Mike. Fuck that shit. Never again. Ever-"

"Hey, doll," the Joker grinned at her.

Mike gave a very dramatic gasp and shut Nancy's laptop, which immediately went quiet.

"We weren't watching the video of you reading Joker fanfiction, Nancy," he said.

"I was," the Joker leered.

Taking advantage of the fact that Mike wasn't looking, Nancy leered back, then ran her hand bashfully through her hair, staring at the floor.

"She doesn't seem to be in to much of an "killing" mood, Mike," the Joker said.

"Can't sleep," Nancy shrugged, any frustration drained away with the Joker's stare. "_Bad dreams_."

Mike turned and looked in concern, but the Joker knew better and grinned.

"I'm fine, Mike," Nancy said, not looking at him. "You guys want coffee?"

"Just whipped some up, babe," the Joker grinned.

"'Kay," Nancy mumbled.

She tripped into the kitchen and poured herself a cup of black coffee.

"So," the Joker asked, turning back to Mike. "What happens at the end?"

"Of the video?" Mike asked. "Oh, um, Nancy quits in the middle of reading and I give her twenty-five bucks for trying."

He shrugged in an anti-climactic kind of way and opened Nancy's laptop back up to shut it down properly.

"So, where's John Deere?" Nancy asked.

"In his truck," Mike said. "Said he didn't want to sleep in a house full of loonies."

Nancy huffed a laugh and sipped her coffee.

"So," she said, swirling her coffee around thoughtfully. "What're we doing today? I figured you had something in mind when Scarecrow showed up. Besides blowing up Wayne Industries anyway."

"Wayne Industries isn't going to blow up on its own, is it?" the Joker giggled, sitting down on the couch and turing on the news.

"Where're we getting the stuff, then?" Mike asked.

"Oh, just a place I know," the Joker hummed as he started flipping through the channels.

"Should I be worried?" Nancy asked from behind her cup.

"Nah," the Joker shrugged. "Security and maintenance are all our people- Scarecrow's and mine. There won't be any hitches."

Nancy nodded in quiet relief and finished off her coffee. Mike stared at the TV and yawned. The Joker stared back at Nancy, making her stomach turn. She licked her lips and walked back into the kitchen.

"You want some coffee, Mike?" she heard from the living room.

"Nah. Nah I'm good," Mike said.

Nancy waited and noted that the volume on the TV went up ever so slightly just before the Joker stepped into the kitchen. She didn't look at him.

"The boogey man trying to get in your head, babe?"

Nancy grabbed at the arms that slipped around her waist and relaxed when kisses started running up her neck.

"More like the boogey bitch," she sighed.

The Joker chuckled against the back of her neck and pulled her closer.

"Poor, poor, baby," he purred.

_Please, please do bad things to me. _

"Too bad the paint'd smear. If not we could..." the Joker let the sentence drop and Nancy frowned.

"Hey, Nancy!" Mike whispered loudly across the room. "They have something on you're dad going. It's a rerun or something, I think."

"Wanna go watch?" the Joker asked. He ran his hands across her stomach and laced his fingers through her belt loops.

"I'll tell you what I wanna do," Nancy hissed.

The Joker giggled again and let her go. She sighed and ran her hand through her hair. Mike beckoned for her and patted the seat next to him on the couch. On the TV, a pudgy looking little man in his mid-30s was pictured in one corner of the screen. A newscaster was yammering on about the "ongoing search for Nancy Webber."

"Where's Mike Engle?" Nancy asked.

"He moved I guess," Mike said. "After the whole thing with being kidnapped and held hostage and stuff."

"God, that was fun," the Joker sighed. "Then Batman came in and ruined everything."

"I was on one of those ferries, you know," Nancy grinned. "Me and my mom and Mike. I think Carol and Anthony were there, too. I kept telling my mom to let me go- she had a good grip on me and kept telling me not to do anything that would get her in trouble. You came on over the speakers and scared the hell out of everyone. Mike looked like he was about to piss himself-" Mike huffed and crossed his arms "-and Carol called me up and started telling me how much she treasured our friendship and how she was sorry for hating me in 8th grade and all this other junk. I just kept telling my mom to let me go so I could pull the god damn switch-" the Joker laughed at her "-I wasn't gonna just sit there and die!"

"Didn't expect you to," the Joker giggled.

"I remember that," Mike sighed. "You were so pissed and your mom just kept saying, "Sit down Nancy, just sit down dammit. You're going to get us in trouble-" she was being kind of selfish."

"She was always selfish," Nancy sighed. "Always worried about _her_self and _her_ life and _her_ job and _her_ reputation. It's kind of funny how I turned out to be the exact opposite."

A sad smile made of sick irony slid across Nancy's face and promptly dropped as she looked back up at the TV, back up at her father.

"Thinking about it now," she said. "If he had stuck with my mom she probably wouldn't be dead."

She started at the floor for a second then back up at the TV.

"I hate him."

/|\

Nancy had been kidnapped, lost in wherever for nearly a month now. Her father had come forward after almost 18 years hoping for some publicity. And yet, life went on. Carol still went to school, Anthony still attended psychology classes, Rob still went on patrol. Though only so. Students, friends of Nancy, held back questions; affection was showed more often towards one another. As one student, Morgan Price, put it, "It's like a second 9/11. The plane crashed when Nancy vanished, and the rest of America became the students- sort of a patriotism thing, only... Nancyism, I guess." Carol and Anthony agreed: losing Nancy was like losing the twin towers to them.

"Only, she's just one tower," Anthony said one day at lunch after a chat with Morgan. "But it's still gone."

"She's not gone yet," Carol reassured him. "If she was gone, we'd know. The Joker makes a show of everything, remember?"

Anthony had only nodded and chugged his milk a bit harder than was necessary.

Things changed at school. For the first few days (and for some, weeks) after Nancy's kidnapping, teachers were more subdued, less apt to write children up for petty things like hats or facial piercings. The same went for the students; the Joker's fangirls wore less makeup, and some wore none at all. They cast their club away and sold their website to someone over the internet. For a day or two, the school gangs fought more often, and then suddenly, not at all. The entire student body was silenced, set in a state of group depression.

Sessions continued in the library for those who had been victims or witnesses of the school shootings, though it had been almost two months since then. They were more tearful now, and attendees blamed the Joker more than ever.

"It's all his fault-"

"He's the one behind the whole thing-"

"The murders, the ferries, the shootings, now Nancy- what next? No- forget that. _Who _next, would be a better question."

Once, at lunch, Carol and Anthony were joined by Heath, the Australian foreign exchange student.

"It's not fair, eh?" he asked in his thick accent. "She's the one tha' led me 'round, ya' know? Nice g'rl. Tha's his point, I think. You know? Take the one we need the most. Eh?"

Carol nodded and swallowed.

"It's like taking out the stud in a wall," Anthony said. "Like busting out a corner of a room. He knows that everything's gonna cave in eventually."

"Bastard," Heath said.

"Wanna know who's even more of a bastard?" Carol choked. "Nancy's "father". He's just now comin' out of the closet. Son of a bitch is just doing it for the publicity."

Carol rubbed her eyes and coughed. Anthony reached for her, but she stood and said something about the bathroom.

"Thing's haven' been strained, righ', between you two?" Heath asked.

"No," Anthony snapped. "Everything's fine. Carol's just upset, alright?"

"Alright, alrigh'," Heath backed off. "You both just look so... angry lately. I'm not after 'er, mate. Promise."

Anthony sighed and nodded. He was frustrated with himself now.

"Sorry," he said.

"S'alrigh'," Heath shrugged. "Everyone's tense- angry, righ'?"

"Right," Anthony breathed.

Carol joined them a short while later, her makeup a bit more new looking than before. Anthony knew she had been crying. Heath just looked at them and fanned off a few of the Joker's ex-fangirls. Anthony chuckled at him and held Carol's hand. After lunch, they all headed off to their separate classes: Carol to choir, Anthony to math, Heath to art. Carol and Anthony kissed, Heath sighed and sidestepped a knot of giggling girls.

After school, Carol made what had become her daily visit to the police station. The secretary greeted her and told her that Rob was in. Carol knocked on the office door and sat in the chair across from Rob when it opened. She figured something then: Rob's office hadn't fallen to pieces since Nancy had been kidnapped. It was a sick kind of irony that made her smile a little.

"They moved Eric," Rob told her.

"Did they?" Carol asked.

"To Arkham."

Carol allowed herself an audible gasp.

"Arkham?" she said. "That's where they put Scarecrow, Rob! Well, before he got out anyway. God knows where he is now."

"Scarecrow doesn't matter," Rob said, waving his hand. "It's Nancy I care about."

"It's what we care about, too Rob," Carol protested. Did he think she didn't care? "It's _all_ we care about."

Rob ran a hand through his hair and blinked hard.

"Why'd they move Eric to Arkham?" Carol said, desperate for a change in subject.

"He tried to kill himself, then he started talking to himself, shanked another inmate, then his roommate," Rob listed. "Truthfully, I think it's a hoax, but if it gets him in tighter security then I'm all for it. Eric's parents weren't so happy about it though-"

"I doubt they were happy with him trying to kill Nancy, either," Carol scoffed, though the anger wasn't directed at Rob.

Rob huffed a laugh and relaxed a little. The rest of their time together was spent discussing the news and Nancy's father, whom neither of them liked at all. Carol left at around 4:30 and waved goodbye to Rob and the secretary on her way out. The drive home seemed to go by a lot quicker than usual, and Carol was home before five. She had dinner, did her homework, and decided to call Mike tomorrow to tell him about Eric. Carol slept well that night.

/|\

Nancy sighed and took the gun Bruce handed her. It was almost 11:30 at night and she had been up since 3 o'clock in the morning. She was a little drowsy. Bruce patted her on the back and smiled at her before slipping his mask over his face. Though the place they were going to was empty and all the cameras were most likely disabled, the Joker still insisted they go in like it was Wal-Mart. Nancy yawned and poked her gloved fingers through the eye-holes of her mask, which frowned up at her. Mike leaned against the far wall, gun in hand and seemingly alert, though Nancy expected he was dozing. Victoria sat in the recliner and ran her hand along the length of her gun. Nancy expected her to start trying to have sex with it soon. Amy and Jason sat on the couch and packed their bag with their laptops, assorted wires and controls and what appeared to be several bomb detonators. Chuck, the truck driver, stood close to the window nearest the door and smoked a cigarette. He stared around at everyone through beady, fogged eyes and kept moving his jaw around. He made Nancy uncomfortable. The Joker came scurrying down the stairs at 11:35.

"Everyone gets in the truck," he said. "Chuck drives. We wait. He knows where we're going."

Chuck gave another "murf," and flicked his cigarette out the window. Everyone moved. Nancy pulled one of Bruce's hoodies over herself and let the hood flop over her head once she had pulled her mask on. Everyone did the same with their own jackets and hoodies. They left one at a time, to be inconspicuous, and followed Chuck down the street a few blocks and into an open-ended alley. He pulled the door to the bed of the truck open and everyone slipped inside the yawning chasm inside. Nancy suddenly felt very small and pressed herself against a wall as everyone else piled in. Mike nudged her and pulled back his mask to smile at her. She could barely see the light glint off of his teeth before the door rattled closed and they were swallowed in darkness.

"Can we really trust this guy, J?" Mike asked through the dark.

"Yeah," Bruce said. "If this bitch ends up driving us to the Po-Po station, I'm gonna have a real problem."

"You?" Mike said. "If Rob ever saw me working for J he'd rip my ball off."

"He'd just be disappointed in me," Nancy sighed

"Oh, boo-hoo," Victoria murmured.

"Shut the whole in your face, Victoria," Mike spat.

"J?" Amy asked.

"He'll take us there," the Joker giggled from across the bed of the truck.

The truck rumbled around them and everyone was thrown to one side as the truck lurked forward. Nancy slid across the floor and hit the door. Mike fell over and ended up getting kicked in the face by Bruce. Amy and Jason fell on top of each other and started grumbling about their equipment. Victoria, who had apparently been sitting down, made a disgusted noise at all of them and sneered beneath her mask. Nancy felt around the floor and made an "umph" sound when she bumped into someone's leg. Whoever it was pulled her to her feet and wrapped their arm around her waist.

"Hey, doll," the Joker giggled in Nancy's ear.

Nancy sighed and grinned.

_Oh, the irony. _

"What? Not happy to see me?" he whispered.

"I can't _see_ anything," Nancy laughed.

They both tittered a little in the corner and Nancy ended up clinging to him when the truck gave a sharp turn and accelerated. The Joker gripped her side a bit to hard and Nancy yelped. He held back a cackle.

"I forgot you were ticklish," he hummed.

"Don't," Nancy shook her head. "Don't you dare."

"Heh-heh-heh. Just you wait."

The rest of the trip was spent reeling and clinging and overhearing laughter from everyone else as they were thrown from side to side. Mike, at one point, landed on Bruce and started fawning over him, giggling like a girl and calling him his hero. Bruce called him a faggot and shoved him off. Mike just laughed and yelped when the truck turned another corner and he was sent sliding across the floor.

"Boss, we need to travel by semi-truck more often," Mike said. "This is fun as hell!"

"I wasn't under the impression that hell was fun," the Joker quipped.

Nancy laughed and Mike said, "Oh, ha ha ha."

Amy and Jason kept arguing with each other about who should hold their bag of equipment, and Victoria didn't do so much as groan and huff at all of them.

"She's just about to piss me off," the Joker whispered.

"Just now?" Nancy asked.

After what seemed to be an hour, everyone was tossed to one side again as the truck came to a complete stop and the engine cut out. They all waited a few seconds and squinted at the light that filtered through the door when Chuck threw it up and open.

"How long you think you'll be?" he asked in a gravelly voice.

"Not much more than half an hour, Chuck," the Joker said before leveling his gun and shooting Chuck in the chest. "Everyone out."

/|\

Wherever they were, it was bright. Nancy kept blinking as they filed in through the unlocked door of... wherever they were. The Joker still hadn't told them where they were, only where to go once they were inside. They split into two teams (Amy, Nancy, and Victoria, and Mike, Bruce, and Jason) and each took a hall.

"I'll be waiting down here, if you need me," the Joker told them as they trotted off. "Don't get lost."

Nancy made a face at him and trotted down the hall next to Amy, gun in hand. Finding nothing but a few offices and an empty security room on the first floor, they headed upstairs hoping for a better selection of rooms. Once upstairs, the boys shooed them away, claiming that they had been there first. Nancy stuck her tongue out at Mike and tripped up to the top floor behind Victoria. Amy let out a hissing "yes" of victory and pulled off her mask. Victoria followed suit and stared down the hall. Nancy leaned against the wall closest to the stairs and looked at the opposite wall. The wall was lined with four heavy, steel doors, each with its own very heavy looking bar-lock. At the end of the hall was a door that led to the other staircase. Nancy could hear the boys downstairs. Amy walked a few feet and threw the door of the first room open.

"Holy hell," she breathed.

"What?" Nancy asked, moving forward to see. Then, she gasped ,too.

The room was rimmed with crates and sacks. The crates were labeled DYNAMITE, the sacs, C4. Victoria nearly dropped her gun.

"Is all this stuff in all the vaults?" Nancy coughed.

"I dunno," Amy said, bringing her gloved hand up to her lips in shock.

"I saw some dollies on the last floor," Victoria started.

"I'll go get one," Amy said. "You guys check the rest of the vaults."

Nancy nodded and moved out of Amy's way. On the floor below, Nancy heard the boys (Mike and Bruce, at least) going nuts over the explosive material they had found in the vaults. She watched Amy dash down the stairs and moved over to the next vault, which held the same contents as the fist. The third one, however, was different from the first two and the one that followed it. The little glass window on the door was frosted over and a little panel next to the handle gave off readings of temperature, pressure, and moisture. Nancy couldn't make heads or tails of any of it, but figured that 12℉ was pretty cold.

"Hey, Vic," she called. "This one's a freezer. Come have a look."

Nancy heard Victoria walk down the hall as she opened the door and stepped inside. She instantly felt the cold sink into her bones and she shivered.

"It's really cold in here," she said, stating the obvious as she stared around the room of unlabeled boxes. "Hey, Vic, is there a light switch or... Vic?"

Victoria was standing in the doorway of the freezer, the only thing holding the door open being Victoria's foot. Nancy swallowed.

"Vic," she repeated. "Is there a... what are you doing?"

Victoria looked at the floor and moved her foot.

"I was here first," Victoria said. "I saw him first. He's mine. He was mine until you showed up. If I get rid of you... he'll love me."

Nancy panicked and dove for the door. Victoria moved her foot and pulled the door closed. Nancy screamed and grabbed for the handle of the door- there wasn't one. Nancy watched in horror as Victoria locked the door and pressed a few buttons on the control panel. The vents that lined the wall rattled and the room slowly became colder.

"NO!" Nancy screamed. "NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!"

Victoria watched her scream and pulled her mask back on.

"He's mine, now," she said.

/|\

"Have you guys seen the crazy shit that's in these vaults?" Amy asked as she galloped down the stairs and passed the boys.

"Oh my God, I know!" Mike squealed. He looked like a kid in a candy shop.

Bruce was giggling and balling his hands up into fists. He looked a bit like Mike.

"Don't have to much fun now," Amy warned them with a laugh. "You blow us up and I swear I'll kick your ass in hell."

"You're not goin' to hell, Amy," Mike said, waving the idea away with both arms. "You're too good of a person."

Jason laughed. Amy pointed at him in a threatening way and laughed, too. She spotted the dollies and rolled one over to Mike when he asked.

"Where's Nancy?" he asked as Bruce started piling crates of dynamite onto the dolly.

"She's upstairs with..." Amy's voice faded out and Mike looked at her.

"What?" he asked.

Amy didn't answer, but let go of her dolly and tore up the stairs, turning to look down the hall when she hit the linoleum. No one was there. She cocked her head to one side and breathed hard, winded from her sprint.

"Is everything okay?" Mike called from downstairs.

"Yeah," Amy called back. "I guess s-"

Amy turned and attempted to gasp, but was cut off when Victoria, wielding her gun by the barrel, whacked her over the head with a sickening crack. Amy didn't have time to fall, because Victoria let her gun drop and caught her by the shoulders. Kicking her gun aside, VIctoria drug an unconscious Amy into the first vault and locked the door. She took off her gloves and rubbed her sweaty hands against her pants before pulling the gloves back on and walking lightly down the stairs to retrieve a dolly from the floor below.

/|\

Nancy was breathing too hard and wasting oxygen. She knew this, and it made her breathe harder.

"I'm gonna die," she said. "I'm gonna die. They're gonna forget me and leave me here to die."

She started sobbing and pulled off her mask to wipe at her face. She controlled her breathing quickly and stared around the room, examining her options. A sudden crack from outside grabbed her attention and she rose shakily to her feet. She wiped the frost away from the little window and craned her neck to see down the hall. She watched Amy's shoulder as Victoria drug her into the first vault at the end of the hall. Her only hope, she thought, was gone. She pulled away from the door and watched as the window frosted over again.

Nancy wiped at her face again and sighed when she found that the few tears she had shed were frozen to her face. She took one more deep breath and let it out slowly as she looked around the room again. None of the boxes were labeled and frozen over. She ran her fingers along the metal of her handgun and frowned.

_No shooting. You'll blow the whole place up. _

She huffed.

_How interesting that everything works out. There just so happens to be a freezer; there just so happens to be a temperature control outside; and it just so happens that none of the boxes in here are labeled, so I don't have a clue what's in them. Ugh. Fuck my life. FUCK IT._

Nancy let another sigh and took another breath, hoping to conserve as much oxygen as she could by breathing less. Then she started to shiver. Down the hall, she could hear Victoria loading up boxes of dynamite and sacs of C4. She would leave and the hall would be quite for about five minutes. Nancy shivered harder and wrapped her arms around herself. She kicked the door and pounded at the place where the handle should have been. Not that it would have mattered; the door was locked from the outside. Nancy's breath was coming out in plumes of vapor now. It hung in the air and hovered up to the ceiling where it dispersed.

_I could try the ventilation. No, with my luck I'll get stuck and freeze to death. _

Nancy felt panic bloom in her stomach again. Her teeth chattered and she started pounding on the door again. She heard talking from outside, and she banged harder, hoping to catch someone's attention. No attention was paid, and Nancy craned her neck again and saw Victoria climb out of the vault at the end of the hall, holding her gun by the barrel. Nancy looked the other way, hoping she caught had some attention from someone else downstairs. No one stood at the top of the other set of stairs. She stopped pounding and watched Victoria set a final box of dynamite on the dolly.

"That's it," Victoria called to no one. Nancy knew who she was talking to.

"YOU FUCKING BITCH! LET ME OUT OF HERE RIGHT FUCKING NOW!" Nancy screamed. "OPEN THIS GOD DAMNED DOOR AND LET ME OUT! FUCK!"

Nancy let out a roar of fury and pounded at the door with everything she had. She pulled out he gun and beat it against the little window- it was made of plexiglass, so it wouldn't break. Nancy screamed again and watched Victoria wheel the last of the explosives down the stairs. Nancy shuddered and shrank. She shivered and let out a little sob. She waited a full 10 minutes, and no one came for her or Amy. Nancy cried out and started pounding on the door again, her heart attempting to beat its way out of her chest. Her lungs burst and contracted, the muscles in her arms screamed with her. Nancy started sobbing again. Big, fat tears of fear leaked out of her eyes and snaked half-way down her face before freezing there on her cheeks. When another five minutes ticked by Nancy gave one final howl and threw herself against the door, her hand trailing down across the plexiglass window.

_I'm going to die in a freezer. I'm going to die in a mother fucking freezer because of some overly obsessed bitch. I'm going to die in a mother fucking freezer and Rob is going to find me here and figure out that I've been working with the Joker since that first bank robbery. He's going to cry and yell, and Mike and Amy and Bruce and Jason and J are all going to go to prison. And it's all because of that fucking bitch. Fuck my life. _

Nancy sank to the floor and leaned against the door, her panting breaths coming in gasps and freezing in her lungs.

_This is it. This is the end, and I'm crying like a bitch. What the fuck is wrong with me? What's my major malfunction? I can't die. Not like this. This is bullshit. _

"Fuck," Nancy sighed.

/|\

Victoria, having just beaten down Amy for a second time, hung the strap of her gun around her shoulder and finished loading the last crate of dynamite onto her dolly.

"That's it," she called to Nancy.

The door of the freezer rattled and Nancy started screaming at her. Victoria just grinned and pulled her mask back on. On her way downstairs, Mike stopped her and asked where Nancy was.

"Just closing a few of the vaults up," Victoria lied easily. "She'll be down in a few. Amy's up there, too. They'll both be down in a second. Let's load the rest of this stuff onto the truck, huh?"

Mike nodded and wheeled his dolly slowly down the stairs. On the ground floor, the Joker was waiting.

"Where's Nancy?" he asked.

"Don't worry," VIctoria chirped.

She kept walking and stiffened when someone grabbed her arm.

"Jason," she heard her employer hiss. "Take Vicky's cart out to the truck, would ya'? And Bruce, c'mere."

Victoria shivered and turned around when the Joker yanked her arm.

"Where's Nancy?" he asked again.

"And Amy," Bruce put in darkly, getting the idea. Scare tactic.

"They-" Victoria choked.

The Joker sighed in impatience and pulled Victoria's mask off, exposing her pale lips and wide, yellow eyes. She whimpered and he wrapped his fingers around her neck, pressed his thumb to her throat. Victoria gave a little sob and grabbed for his wrist. Her arms were pulled down to her sides by Bruce. Victoria's lips just trembled and she tried to speak.

"I just thought you'd be better off wi-w-without-" Victoria tried.

Bruce let go of her arms and she screamed when she was thrown against the wall. Her neck gave an uncomfortable pop, but she recovered quickly and looked up with her arms over her face. The Joker shooed Bruce away and told him to block the door.

"Vicky, Vicky, Vicky," the Joker sighed. "You just love getting yourself into _shitty _situations don't you? You get jealous, you try and ruin my new toy- and now you go and hide her from me? Now, Vicky, that's not smart at all."

"Pl-p-ple-please!" Victoria cried. "I'm begging-"

The Joker pulled her arms away and kicked her in the chest. Victoria doubled over and coughed before jerking up again when another kick caught her in the jaw. She slumped over and gagged on her own blood as it pooled in her mouth and trickled down her throat. She had bitten her tongue. She looked up and sputtered again, but the Joker didn't seem to care. He simply grabbed one of her wrists and hoisted her to her feet before pinning her to the wall by the throat. Victoria choked and sputtered and grabbed his arm, beat at his wrist.

"Yo-o-o-ou don't even know how long I've wanted to do this," the Joker said in a strangled voice.

His tongue whipped out to feel at the scars on his face and he bashed Victoria against the wall as he reached in his pocket.

Mike came bursting in then, followed by Jason.

"NANCY!" Mike screamed up the stairs.

"AMY!" Jason called after Mike, streaming up the stairs. "AMY! SIS! AMY!"

The Joker stopped what he was doing and motioned for Bruce, who was sporting a black eye and a bloody lip.

"They wanted in," he said.

Victoria groaned and sniffed.

"That's fine, Brucey, that's fine," the Joker grated, tongue snaking out to wipe his lips and cheeks. "Just take Vicky out to the truck and don't do anything to her yet."

Bruce nodded and sneered at Victoria as she dropped to the floor. The Joker took off up the stairs and down the hall where Jason and Mike were prying the first vault open. Jason screamed and dove inside, stumbling out a few seconds later carrying what seemed to be Amy. Mike looked horrified. Then, a noise...

The Joker moved around the door of the first vault and followed the faint slapping sound from the other end of the hall. The second vault was empty, he found. The third was not. The slapping stopped and he took about half a second to look over the little panel next to the door. -10℉, it read.

"Shit," he breathed.

The door fell open as soon as he pulled the lock open. The thing that fell out made him choke on the air in his throat: Nancy. A shivering, chattering, blue-lipped, and dead looking Nancy.

"Fuck," the Joker choked.

"_NANCY_!" Mike howled.

The Joker didn't pay him any attention and picked Nancy up from off the floor. Mike was next to him in an instant, making noises that sounded like a crying dog. Jason was at the other end of the hall, cradling Amy's beaten, bloody face in his hands and moaning in grief. Mike looked at his boss in despair and terror.

"Is she-?" he mewled.

The Joker shook his head and pulled off his jacket to wrap it around Nancy, who still wasn't moving much. Mike squeaked and helped keep Nancy steady.

"Get Amy out to the truck," the Joker told Mike. "I got Nancy."

Mike obeyed and rushed over to help a sobbing Jason to his feet. They both tripped down the stairs and the Joker kicked the freezer door closed. He did the same to the first vault and followed the sobbing boys out the door. Nancy stirred a little, but only curled up when the cold November air hit her.

"Fuck," the Joker hissed again. "Mike! Put the heat on! In the front dammit!"

Mike, who was just about to kick the shit out of Victoria, turned and shot around the truck, pulled the passenger door open and turned all the dials to maximum heat and force. The Joker opened the driver's side door and handed Nancy over to Mike. He pulled himself into the driver's seat and started the engine. The truck lurched and Mike turned around when there were a few thumps from behind him. He pulled Nancy closer and rubbed her arm.

"Get warm, Nancy," he begged. "Get warm. Don't die."

The Joker glanced at him and forced the boiling envy back down where it belonged. He took a sharp turn and pulled onto the freeway. He sighed and drove the rest of the way home with a list of things he was going to Victoria piling up in the back of his mind. Mike kept feeling for Nancy's pulse and fluttering for the next half hour. When the little glowing numbers on the clock read **1:50AM**, Nancy coughed and looked around.

"Whahappnd?" she slurred.

Mike and the Joker sighed. Mike laughed a little in relief and hugged her, while the Joker just smiled out the windshield and laughed a little, too.

"Fuck, Nancy," he chuckled. "You almost made Mike piss himself."

Mike didn't talk back, he just laughed a real belly laugh and pulled Nancy closer.

"Aww, fuck it," Mike said, looking out the window. "What are we gonna do with Victoria?"

"You aren't gonna do anything," the Joker said. "She's mine to kick the shit out of."

"I can punch 'er or something, right? Something?" Mike asked. "Jason'll want to put a little something in, too."

"You can loosen her up for me," the Joker grinned. Nancy looked at him and shivered. He was scary. "I get to finish her off."

Mike stared out the window and didn't say anything for the rest of the trip.

/|\

**I tell you what, someone's 'bout to get FUCKED UP! Bravo. Hell yes. Lots of violence in the next chapter, more sick twists and such. Hope you enjoyed. I did. **

**Ta ta until next time,**

**-Jess**


	38. Victoria's Secret

**Hope you guys all enjoyed the last two chapters. And, now, we see what becomes of Victoria.**

**Disclaimer (For shits and giggles): Don't own TDK. Wish I did. **

/|\

The semi-truck was parked in an alleyway about five blocks from the Home, the C4 and dynamite were wheeled over the distance by Bruce and Mike. Meanwhile, Jason and the Joker carried Nancy and Amy back to the Home. Nancy took residence in the bathroom, soaking in a hot bath to raise her body temperature, while Amy was taken into the kitchen where Jason found a few dish rags to wipe the coagulated blood off her face. Victoria had been bound and gagged in the back of the of the truck.

Once the truck had been emptied, Bruce had the pleasure of carrying a sobbing Victoria back to the Home, where she was shoved into the spare room for safekeeping.

Scarecrow got a wake up call when the Joker phoned him asking for a doctor.

"It's almost three in the God damned morning," Scarecrow seethed. "And you want a doctor? What, does Nancy need an abortion?"

The Joker ground his teeth and said, "Listen you little chicken shit, I swear to God if you make one more little snide remark about her I'm gonna hunt you down and break your neck. Then, I'll cut you up into little pieces and send your dick to the Gotham Tonight station. Got it?"

"Yes," Scarecrow coughed. Terror laced his next few words. "What happened? There weren't suppose to be and snags."

"It wasn't any of your people," the Joker started, looking back into the kitchen where Amy was groaning and Jason was cooing above her with a rag. "It was one of mine- one of the cronies."

"Which one?" Scarecrow asked, suddenly very confused and taken aback. "They all seemed clean- somewhat."

"Doesn't matter," the Joker told him. "She'll be a bleeding stump soon. I just need a doc to readjust one of my other one's noses."

"I'll get on it," Scarecrow said. "I'll come with him. I'll be there in about half an hour."

"Good. Oh, and Scarecrow? Do me a favor and bring over some towels."

"Towels?"

The Joker hung up without answering and rolled his sleeves back up again. He had thrown his coat onto the couch and loosened his tie. Bruce was upstairs, standing in front of the door of the spare room. Victoria was inside, blind and paralyzed thanks to half a role of duct tape. The silvery adhesive was wrapped around her head to cover her eyes and mouth and around her wrists and ankles. She wasn't going anywhere, anytime soon.

Nancy was still in the bath, soaking and blowing bubbles.

"Eh, Nancy? You a'ight in there?" Bruce asked. He didn't need to shout because he was only a few feet away.

Nancy, who had submerged herself under the warm water, resurfaced and called, "Huh?"

"Nothin'," Bruce said.

Nancy nodded, though he couldn't see her, and sank under the water again. She had pulled the moldy curtain around the tub, so if anyone peaked in they wouldn't see her naked. She blew some bubbles through her nose and pulled the curtain away a little to see through the crack in the door and across the hall. Bruce was standing in front of the spare room door, hands behind his back, stiff-as-a-board posture. He looked very much like a security guard.

"Bruce?" she asked. Bruce stood up a little straighter. "We're you ever a bodyguard or something?"

Bruce laughed a little and stood at ease.

"Yeah, actually, I was," he said. "I worked for the mob for a long time- bodyguard stuff. No real deals or anythin' like that."

"Who'd you guard?" Nancy asked, hoping for some conversation. "Anyone big?"

"Yeah," Bruce sighed. He sounded a big regretful. "I worked for Gambol for a long time-" Nancy gasped, "-yeah. But then he threatened my girl and I told him to go fuck 'imself. He hadn't bother me much since."

"Is that why you took the job?" Nancy asked. "With the Joker? So you could get back at Gambol?"

"Well, that, and I just needed a job," Bruce chuckled. "Shitty part is, my girl left me after that- so the whole thing really wadn't to worth it."

"Ouch. I'm sorry," Nancy winced.

"Is a'ight," Bruce said. Nancy saw him wave a bear-sized hand. "She cost too much, anyway. Liked the expensive stuff- designer purses and shoes and jew'lry and shit. Wasn't worth the money. Not that I didn't like my suits."

Nancy imagined Bruce in a nice designer suit, and smiled. It sort of fit him, both personality-wise and body build-wise. Her smile dropped when a yelp bounced up the stairs and someone started sobbing. Amy was still in the kitchen from what Nancy could figure. Victoria had tried to beat in her face: broken nose, missing teeth, two black eyes and a mess of blood where her lips should have been. But, from what she heard from Bruce, Victoria didn't look much better. The Joker had beaten her up pretty well, too.

Mike was downstairs, too. Though there wasn't much for him to do, he was spending a large amount of his time dabbing at Amy's face and consoling Jason, who was still beside himself. Besides that, he just sat in the living room and debated with himself about whether or not he should go upstairs and talk to Nancy. Chatting with her while she was in the bath tub (naked) made Mike feel a bit uncomfortable. Fortunately, at around 3:45AM, Mike was given an excuse to go upstairs when Scarecrow knocked on the door, holding, very confusedly, a trash bag full of towels. Behind him was a very sleepy, bristle-faced mob doctor.

"Towels?" Scarecrow asked again, tossing the bag to the Joker when he walked in from the kitchen. "And my doc. Where's your man?"

"Woman," the Joker corrected. "In the kitchen. Bother's a little defensive. Mike, take these upstairs to Nancy, wouldja?"

Mike nodded and caught the bag of towels that landed in his lap and trudged upstairs without another word. The Joker led Scarecrow and the mob doctor into the kitchen. Scarecrow backpedaled at the sight of Amy's face, but got over it and took to leaning against the doorframe in between the kitchen and the living room. The doctor, having seen much, much worse, simply set his bag down and examined Amy's broken nose.

"It will need to be reset," he said in an unrecognizable foreign accent.

"Get it done," the Joker sighed, rubbing his eyes. He was surprisingly tired.

The doctor nodded and pulled his bag open, the contents of which made Jason grab Amy's wrist. Amy turned her head and groaned at Scarecrow, who shuddered.

The doctor continued, "I'll need to pull zose extra teeth, also. You will be unconscious for the whole t'ing, if it makes joo feel any better."

"You have anesthesia?" Jason asked.

"No," the doctor said.

"Nnnmf," Amy grunted.

Upstairs, Mike sort of smiled and nodded at Bruce and knocked on the girl's bathroom door.

Nancy, who had been under water at the time, resurfaced and said, "Nuh?"

"Nancy?" Mike asked, though he already knew who he was talking to. "Can I come in? I've got towels."

"Towels?" Nancy asked.

"Yeah," Mike said. He nudged the door open and peaked inside. Nancy looked back at him through the little chink in the curtains and attempted a half-smile.

"Hey," she said.

"Hey," Mike said. He let himself in and sank down against the wall closest to where Nancy's head was. He let the trash bag of towels settle next to him with a crinkle and crackle.

"How's Amy?" Nancy asked.

Mike didn't answer at first, but weighed his options for an answer.

Finally, he said, "Shitty. But J called up Scarecrow... he brought a doctor and um..." Mike held up the bag of towels.

Nancy nodded and rubbed her eyes. She, too, was surprisingly tired.

The room went quiet, the two friends letting the events that had occurred during the last few hours sink in.

"Did you guys get all the stuff you need?" Nancy asked.

"J says it should be enough. Now the trouble is getting inside Wayne Industries and setting everything up," Mike said. "He said that that shouldn't be to hard either... Who got you in the tub?"

Nancy flushed a little and sank into the water a bit deeper. When they had gotten back to the Home, the Joker had carried her up the stairs while everyone else was unloading either other people or explosive material. He had started the hot water and told her to get inside. Then he left. Nancy frowned.

_He could have at least made sure I got in.... no... I was naked. That would have been awkward. What the hell am I talking about? This whole night has been awkward... though that's putting it a bit too lightly. _

"J helped me upstairs," Nancy said, then shrugged. "I got in the tub. That's all."

Mike nodded and looked at his feet.

"Mike?" someone shouted from downstairs.

Mike jumped to his feet and sprang to the door, "Boss?"

"Is Nancy still in the tub?" the Joker shouted.

"Yeah," Mike called back. "Why?"

"Tell her to stick her head under the water!"

"What?"

"Just do it, Mike."

"Stick your head under water," Mike said.

Nancy shrugged and did as she was told. A second later, a muted shriek made her jump up. But before she could say anything Mike screamed, "What the fuck was that?"

"Amy getting her nose readjusted," the Joker said.

Nancy heard him clunk up the stairs.

"Is she okay?" Mike asked, worried.

"She's unconscious now," the Joker sighed as he pushed the bathroom door open. "Emo kid's making a ruckus. She's fine though, just sleeping."

Nancy heard him giggle, and she closed the curtain.

"I'm gonna be leaving in a few minutes," the Joker started again, sounding nonchalant. "Me and Vicky are going on a little date."

Nancy shivered; the phrase almost made her feel bad for Victoria. Just the way he said it...

"You doin' alright in there, babe?"

Nancy jumped and opened the curtain a little. Just looking at him made her remember the side of His Tongue Down My Throat she had ordered.

_God, that'd be nice right now. I just need a big, nasty smooch. MmmHmm. Oh, yes please.... I'd also like a large order of Him Gnawing on My Neck, please. If you don't mind..._

"Whatcha starin' at babe?"

Nancy, having been fantasizing, jerked awake and mumble an incomprehensible assurance before shutting the curtain again and resuming her daydreaming. Mike, still oblivious to the relationship between his best friend and employer, simply assumed that Nancy was tired. The Joker, aware of both his relationship with Nancy and Mike's obliviousness, just giggled and look a second to think of all the things he could be doing to Nancy at that exact moment. Wonderful, wonderful things. Suddenly, he thought of all the awful things he could be doing to Victoria at that moment, and his mind was suddenly distracted with terrifying macabre things. Wonderful, wonderful things.

"I gotta go," he said sharply.

"Don't have too much fun," Mike said.

Nancy peaked through the curtains one more time and grinned when the Joker winked at her. Mike didn't notice.

"I'm just gonna soak for a while longer, Mike," Nancy said. "Until the water goes cold."

"Mmkay," Mike said. "If you don't mind I'm just gonna check on Amy one more time and hit the hay."

"Sure, Mike," Nancy said.

She heard him get up and leave. She heard Bruce step away from the door of the spare room. The door squeaked open, and Nancy heard Victoria's muffled screams. Nancy shuddered and sank under water again. She didn't want to hear it.

/|\

Victoria was tossed in the back of the van, still taped together and bleeding anew thanks to a fresh cut on her forehead compliments of the van floor. She sobbed and squirmed around hopelessly, howling and crying behind the tape.

"It's just gonna make your eyes burn, Vicky," the Joker told her as he closed the door on her ankles, reopened it, shoved her further into the car and shut the door again.

He drove straight out of town with no problem, the fact that it was nearly 4 o'clock in the morning obviously being a contributing factor. Once on the outskirts of town, where the trees were a bit thicker and the only real thing in sight was the highway, the Joker pulled into the trees and parked the van. Making sure that no one could see, he pulled Victoria out of the van by her hair and drug her behind the trees.

Victoria screamed muted screams and squirmed around hopelessly. The Joker decided to save himself the trouble and picked her up and through her over his shoulder. When he got as far as he thought he needed to, the Joker dropped VIctoria, not caring what hit where. Victoria sobbed and squirmed away from the sharp root she had landed on.

"Wanna see where we are Vicky?" he asked.

VIctoria shook her head violently and the hair that wasn't taped to her head flipped about.

"Aww, come on, Vicky, don't be a sour sport," the Joker sighed impatiently.

He pulled a knife from one of his pockets and knelt down next to Victoria, who had started to scream again. Not caring how much blood he drew or where the knife actually went, the Joker grabbed Victoria's face and ran the knife down the side of her nose. Victoria heaved a dry sob and attempted a muffled scream. He pulled the tape away, slowly, from one of her eyes. Her eyelashes and eyebrow were pulled off, along with a very large amount of hair that came from her head as the tape was pulled away and yanked off. Letting out one last howl, Victoria shoved forward as hard as she could, trying to knock her ex-employer off balance, and fell sideways.

Her escape attempt failed, and she was hoisted to her knees by her hair.

"Ya' see, Vicky. This is what happens when you try and break my toys," the Joker sighed. "First you break her, then I fix her- then you make fun of her- that hurt her feelings you know- and then you try and hide her from me? That's not very smart at all, Vicky. Not smart at all."

He reeled back and punched her in the face. Victoria yelped, but made no other noise besides that.

"I could do this real quick, Vick," he giggled. "Or I could drag it out and make it real painful... what do you think? I want your opinion- I think you should have one, ya' know. It's your life, right?"

Victoria hollered mutedly and squirmed around uselessly in response.

"Come on Vicky- speak up!" He kicked her. "No? Nothing?" He kicked her again, as hard as he could. Victoria rolled over and started crying. The Joker just groaned and leaned against a tree. "The morning commuters'll be driving to their happy little jobs soon. I may have to rush it... Although..."

Victoria made a noise that sounded a bit like, "_Mo- mo! Meeez. Non'd_!"

"What's that, Vicky?" the Joker asked with a grin.

Victoria just sobbed pathetically again. The Joker grabbed her by the hair and hoisted her to her feet. She screamed. He observed her for a moment, then grabbed the back of her neck and threw her against the nearest tree.

"I suppose I should hurry up, huh?" he mused to himself thoughtfully. He tapped his chin and pulled a knife out of his pocket. Victoria started hyperventilating through her nose. The Joker licked his lips and let his tongue work around the scars on his cheeks. Victoria slithered like an earthworm on the ground and tried to plea for his forgiveness again. It didn't work.

The Joker knelt down again and grabbed Victoria's hair. He leaned forward and whispered, "You better hope this kills you," before sliding the knife into the place where tape covered Victoria's mouth.

He pulled up, then did it again on the other side.

Victoria didn't have time to scream. She just gagged and slumped over when the Joker let go of her hair. He stayed like that for a while and watched her bleed and breathe. Then, very casually, he stood and wiped his knife on some moss that was growing off of a tree and dropped it back in his pocket.

"See ya' around, Vicky," he said.

And he left.

/|\

Nancy watched the last of the water swirl around and around as it swam down the drain. She hummed a little tune to herself and stood up. Taking one quick peak out the curtain, she picked up one of her shoes and threw it at the door so it would close, and got out of the bath tub. She rummaged through the trash bag of towels and pulled one out without thinking about it. She wrapped it around herself and trudged out of the bathroom, across the hall, and into her own room.

She dug through the bag she had stolen from Wal-Mart and pulled out a fresh pair of underwear and jeans. She pulled them on, along with a bra, tank top, long sleeved shirt, another short sleeved shirt over that, and finally the jacket that Mike had found for her. She didn't plan on going to sleep until that night, if not to keep her sleeping schedule regulated.

The front door slammed downstairs, and Nancy turned around and pulled the door open in time to watched the Joker walk back to his room. He didn't look at her. Nancy frowned and looked at his blood caked hands. She sighed and watched the door to his bedroom close. After standing for a moment and watching, she dug through her bag again and pulled out the pair of scissors she had taken and walked into the bathroom. Mike walked up the stairs and knocked on the bathroom door, though it was already open.

"Did you see him?" he asked.

Nancy turned to look at him as she inspected her hair in the mirror and nodded. "He's scary sometimes."

Mike nodded vigorously and rubbed his eyes. He told her he was off to bed and Nancy bade him goodnight (or good morning) and looked back at herself in the mirror. Her hair had become shaggy and droopy around her ears- too long in the front and uneven all the rest of the way around. She looked down at the scissors and back up at the mirror. She grabbed at a chunk of hair and cut it. Not having handled scissors like this before, Nancy sort of grimaced at the results and tried again on the back. After a few slices and chops, Nancy got the hang of it a little: she cut her hair so that it didn't hang around her ears; she cut her bangs so that they didn't flop in front of her eyes; and she trimmed the back enough that she didn't seem to have a mullet. She nodded at her reflection and turned the tap on to wash the scissors.

"You cut it."

Nancy looked up and at the Joker's reflection. She gave a small smile and went back to washing her scissors.

"It was getting a little shaggy," she said.

"More for me to grab on to," he giggled.

The door squeaked shut and he wrapped his arms around her waist. Nancy leaned back against him and tossed her scissors into the sink.

"It's been a long couple of months," she sighed, rubbing her eyes.

He hummed at her and started playing with the hem of her tank top. Nancy smiled at his hands and closed her eyes.

"Maybe you should go to bed," he suggested.

"Nah," Nancy shrugged. "I'll just end up waking up at six in the evening and my whole sleep schedule'll be all out of whack."

The Joker hummed at her again and ran his thumb along the newly healed scar on her hip. Nancy gasped and grabbed his wrist. He giggled frantically against her shoulder and looked in the mirror.

"Your lips look a little chapped, doll," he said slowly.

It was all Nancy could do to keep herself from smiling maniacally.

"I think Bruce stole some Chapstick from Wal-Mart while we were there."

Nancy couldn't stop herself from frowning.

"Just kidding."

Nancy was suddenly pressed up against the opposite wall with her hands pinned to her sides. She closed her eyes and leaned forward- he leaned back. Nancy opened her eyes and glared at him, he laughed. He did it again, making sure that their lips only brushed, never made full contact. It was worse than torture.

"Oh, for Christ's sake, J, if you're just gonna-" Nancy started.

He ignored her and yanked her wrists up around his shoulders. She let out a little gasp that was quickly stifled when their lips crashed together.

_BAM BAM BAM_

"Nancy are you in there?" Mike asked with a bit of a tired slur.

Nancy bit the Joker's lip just before being spun around and forced to face the mirror. The Joker grabbed the scissors from out of the sink and pretended to cut her hair.

"Sorry," she squeaked at him. He just leaned forward and nipped her earlobe and giggled. After a quick recovery, Nancy shouted back at Mike, "I'm in here, Mike."

Mike opened the door a little and peered through the crack.

"Goo'nigh'," he said.

Nancy chuckled and said, "Night, Mike."

"Amy wants to talk to you when you have the time," Mike added before closing the door.

Nancy bit back an agitated sigh and said, "M'kay, Mike. G'night."

She listened to him walk down the hall and close the door to his room. Bruce must have been in there too, because there was a sudden thump of pillows hitting the wall. Nancy grinned at the sink and grabbed the Joker's arms when they wound around her waist again. He trailed light kisses down her neck. Nancy closed her eyes and reached up and back to tangle her fingers in his hair.

"I should probably stop smearing you with make up, huh?" he hummed against her ear.

"Hm?" Nancy hummed back, not really listening.

"She knows, doesn't she? Amy," the Joker said, sounding serious.

Nancy opened her eyes and frowned at herself in the mirror. An angry bubble expanded in her stomach. Of course Amy knew.

Nancy nodded slowly and tried to straighten up, but the Joker just pulled her back against him and started running his hands across her stomach. The angry bubble inside contracted and eventually ceased to exist.

"Go talk to Amy. We'll _talk_ some more tomorrow," the Joker said after drawing his arms around and letting his fingers wind through Nancy's belt loops.

Nancy sighed and turned around. "You going to bed?" she asked.

He shrugged and said, "Probably not."

Nancy reached up and ran her thumb across his cheek. He leaned away and she smirked.

"Sissy," she said before walking out of the room.

In the kitchen, where Amy was still laying -conscious now-, Nancy took a seat in one of the chairs from the dining table.

"I hope I interrupted something," Amy smirked.

"Gee, thanks," Nancy smirked back. "Mike did, actually. Just in case you were wondering."

"Good man," Amy nodded at the ceiling.

"You feeling any better?" Nancy asked.

"A bit," Amy's voice sounded thick. "Doc had to numb me up to pull what was left of my molars out."

Nancy hissed between her teeth and shifted uncomfortably. "Shit."

"Yeah," said Amy. "I was unconscious- the doctor reset my nose before anything else. That hurt like 10 bitches on a bitch-boat..."

"A Victoria-Boat?" Nancy snorted.

Amy snorted, too, but regretted instantly when a sharp pain ran between her eyes. "Ow," she said.

"I should let you rest," Nancy said.

Amy nodded and looked at Jason, who was dozing against the fridge.

"Bed, sis?" he droned.

Amy nodded and propped herself up on her elbows. Nancy stood and helped Jason lift Amy from off the table. Amy swayed dangerously and gripped their shoulders. Jason took one of her arms and held it around the back of his neck, his other hand grabbed Amy's hip. He and Amy slowly made their way upstairs. Nancy watched them go and waited for Jason to come back downstairs. From there she went into the kitchen and started up some coffee. The Joker came back down a while later to grab his jacket, which was still on the couch, and disappeared upstairs again.

"Are you alright?" Jason asked.

Nancy turned from watching the Joker walk out of the living room and shrugged.

"It's been a weird couple of months," she admitted. "School gets shot up, mom commits suicide, friend almost gets raped, I get carved up, then kidnapped, then I get thrown into a jewelry counter and Victoria tries to lock me in an industrial freezer." She finished her list off with a nod and a sigh. "Weird."

"Depressing is the word I thought of," Jason said. "That or agonizing, scaring, traumatizing... things like that."

Nancy grinned at her coffee and sat down at the dining table. She set her coffee down and leaned back in her chair to rub her eyes.

"Just a long month or so," Nancy sighed.

/|\

Victoria was holding her face together. She had torn her bindings on the same sharp root she had fallen on a few minutes earlier. Her face suddenly reminded her of the movie Predator.

With one hand, she cupped her face and held her cheeks in place while the other was roving around in her back pocket.

Since her visit to Wal-Mart, and even before that, she had been doing a lot of rebellious thinking. Having the living hell beaten out of her by the man she so desperately loved had kick started the mutinous thoughts that had been stewing around in her greasy-haired head. An event that had occurred at Wal-Mart had made her think even more. There had been a man there- he had been dressed in a very nice suit and even with a gun barrel in his face, had been very pleasant to her. The man had introduced himself as Jared. Amy had not been there at that point in time, being distracted by the rows and rows of food that they were supposed to be stockpiling. Victoria had ignored the man at first, focused on redeeming herself and not looking like an idiot.

The man was insistent, though, pressing and talking and being pleasant. At long last, or after about 10 minutes, Victoria took whatever Jared had been offering. It was a business card. The only thing extraordinary about it was the fact that the name Gambol was printed in big, swirly, silver letters on it. Victoria knew the name all to well. Instead of simply throwing the card away, as she would have done with any other card, she had shoved it in her back pocket, forgetting about it until just now.

She searched for it desperately, groping around and finally finding it in a crumpled, dirty mess. She took her cell phone out of her pocket and dialed the number on the card. She waited.

/|\

Gambol was still asleep when his phone rang. He jerked awake and pulled the gun out from under his pillow. Finding that the source of the noise was only his phone, he sighed at his own paranoia and answered the ringing.

"Hello?" he asked, agitated.

"Mr. Gambol?" asked a thick, shaky voice on the other line.

"Who is this?" Gambol frowned. Who the hell was calling him at 4 in the morning?

"Mr. Gambol, m-my name is Victoria... I- I used to work for the Joker- I need your help- please," Victoria slurred, sounding as if she had a fist full of marbles in her mouth.

Gambol didn't say anything for a moment.

"Mr. Gambol?" Victoria's voice said.

"Is this a joke? 'Cause if it is I can track your phone and-"

"It's not a joke!" Victoria sobbed. "I'm beaten and bleeding and in the middle of nowhere! _Please_ help me. I can tell you whatever you want- just please help me!"

"Whatever I want?" Gambol asked.

"Whatever! Anything! Everything!" Victoria cried. "Please."

"Alright, alright," Gambol said, holding his hand up as if Victoria was in the room with him. "Where are you?"

/|\

**Oh, shit-damn-fuck. What the hell's up with this shit? Don't you love cliffhangers and twists and such? **

**INTERESTING: I spent Thanksgiving washing dishes in my parent's bath tub because our kitchen sink was fucked up. Happy Thanksgiving. Ha ha ha. **


	39. Hospitality

**No disclaimer this time, lovies. We all know that if I owned the Dark Knight I would have had someone following Heath around to monitor his pill intake. Dammit. **

/|\

Gambol had driven, or rather, been driven, about eight miles out of town where the girl named Victoria claimed to be. She was there, of course, sitting in the bushes with a bloody face cupped in shaky hands. Victoria had already explained her condition to him, which was why Gambol had brought his personal physician out with him for the trip. Once inside Gambol's leather upholstered car, Victoria attempted spill the beans, but not before having her face wound up in gauze.

Gambol explained to her that he had all the time in the world to listen to her, that she needed to rest and get all patched up before she did any talking. She had smiled at him as best she could, but he only saw her cheeks rise over the gauze.

Her appearance was hideous- black eyes, bloodied, broken nose, random gashes and bruises dotting her arms and face, along with the new addition to her cheeks, which were already starting to bruise terribly; her eyebrows and eyelashes had been torn off by the tape that had been used to binder her; a good lot of hair was missing from around her scalp, and the hair that was left stuck up and out at odd angles. The doctor didn't even bother to remove the tape from around her mouth yet, stating that the area was already sensitive and that removing the tape would only make her face more painful and bloody. Gambol didn't argue, and neither did Victoria.

The return trip to Gotham was quiet, fast, and smooth. Victoria fell asleep, her head lolled to one side as the car shimmied around corners. Gambol woke her gently when they arrived back at his bar and helped her inside. The doctor, who Gambol simply called MD, followed them inside.

"MD's gonna take real good care of you, babe," Gambol cooed at Victoria.

Victoria smiled weakly at him and allowed MD to peel the bloody bandages away. Gambol left the room and fixed himself a drink.

-

After about an hour, Victoria lay in one of the bar's upstairs bedrooms, asleep, clean, and stitched back together. MD and Gambol were exchanging pleasantries in the main room while Gambol counted out MD's pay.

"It was shitty, man," MD said, swirling the contents of his Miller Light around in their bottle. "I had to put her to sleep first, then the tape -ugh, the tape- the shit was everywhere- on her face, in her hair, 'round 'er wrists an' ankles... he beat the hell out of her, man."

"Mm, I bet," Gambol nodded as he counted out the last few dollars. He straightened them out, wrapped them in a rubber band and tossed them to MD, who caught them with a grin.

"Always a pleasure serving you, sir," he grinned maliciously. "Always a pleasure. Say, whataya gonna do wit' 'er now? I mean, the bitch works for the J-Man... I mean..."

"I'll get what I want out of her and make her feel safe and happy," Gambol said. "Then I'll probably get rid of her like I will the techs. They won't be much use after I'm done with the Joker."

"How ya gonna get, 'em, I mean-" MD said. "He's, like, impossible to kill, or torture or whatever. I've seen the guy- heard what he did at Wayne's party. He's a crazy sonnova bitch... you see what 'ee did t' her. I pray for that poor Webber bitch."

"Now, now MD, no need to spout profanity," Gambol leered. "Not all women are bitches-"

"Yeh, tell that to my ex," MD sneered. "Anyhow, man, you call when you need me. Anytime, you know that- always a pleasure, I mean."

"Sure, MD," Gambol smiled again. "Anytime. Take care now."

"Will do, Mr. Gambol, sir," MD said. He picked up his suitcase, grabbed his hat, and sidled out the door with a pocket full of delicious cash.

/|\

Mike's phone buzzed.

He didn't answer.

It buzzed again.

Mike rolled over in bed.

It buzzed again.

Mike jumped and fell out of bed. He jumped back up and crawled across his bed. He caught his phone just before it went to his voicemail and answered.

"M'ello?" he slurred.

"Mike?" It was Carol. "Mike? Is that you?"

"Carol?" Mike asked.

"Yeah," Carol said. "Is this Mike?"

"Mm. Yeah, sorry. Had a rough night," Mike said. "Partying and studying and stuff."

"Oh. You sound like hell," Carol pointed out.

"I'm gettin' there," Mike said. "What's up?"

"They moved Eric," Carol said. "To Arkham. He was going crazy there."

"He's crazy all the time." Mike rubbed his eyes and blinked hard. "What time is it?"

"It's, like, 8 o'clock," Carol told him.

"M'kay," Mike said. He yawned. "What else's up?"

"Lots," Carol said. "But I can tell you later. You sound tired."

"S'okay," Mike said. "Tell me now, while I'm awake."

"Okay," Carol chirped. "Well, you know how, at school, there were those girls who were, like, really into the Joker? Yeah, well, they don't like him anymore. They say they like Nancy more, so now, like, they're Nancy-fangirls. And I told you all about Nancy's dad, right? Right. Okay. So, did you here about what happened last night?"

"What happened last night?" Mike asked. He hadn't really paid attention until that point.

"The Joker and a bunch of his goons took off with a bunch of C4 from this explosives compound place."

"And dynamite," Mike added without realizing what he was saying.

"What?" Carol sounded shocked. "How'd you know?"

Mike's eyes darted around the room nervously and he swallowed. "I'unno. Just guessed. I watched a bunch of those Coyote and Roadrunner cartoons last night. You said explosives... and I just sort of... you know- TNT..."

"Oh," Carol said, buying Mike's lame lie. "Well, I better let you go Mike. You sound tired."

"Mmm. Yeah," Mike said. "I'll talk atcha later."

"Okay! Bye Mike! Kiss, kiss."

"Kiss, kiss, Carol."

Mike hung up and rolled over in bed again.

"Was that the sexy nun?" Bruce's voice rumbled.

"Mmhmm." Mike yawned again and curled up in a ball.

"Nice," Bruce said.

"That's gross, Bruce."

The beds creaked one more time, Jason turned over to blink at them, and all was quiet again.

/|\

Nancy was in the kitchen. Jason had gone off to bed, leaving her to contemplate sleep. The idea was very tempting now, but she ignored the urge. She would sleep tonight and maintain a somewhat normal sleeping schedule.

Nancy drank some coffee and moved over to the window. The sun was slowly creeping up the skyscrapers and making a bloody-colored mess of the sky. Nancy wondered how long it took for Victoria to die. She drank some coffee.

Movement from upstairs made her look up at a the ceiling. The Joker was still awake, choosing the same route as her, though she expected that he would fall asleep some time that day. He had been up longer than she had. He never seemed to sleep, and that worried Nancy a little. It wasn't that she thought that he couldn't take not sleeping, its just that actually sleeping was healthy. A lot more healthy than _not_ sleeping, at least.

Nancy looked back out the window and wondered if Rob was on his way to work yet. She glanced at the microwave and frowned when the numbers 12:00 kept flashing at her. Not knowing how to measure time by the position of the sun, Nancy only assumed that it was around 7 o'clock or 8 now. The ceiling creaked again.

"The whole damn house is gonna fall apart," Nancy said, taking a drag of her coffee and staring at the ceiling.

"Rrrrrrrr-k," said the house.

"Hm," Nancy sighed.

She walked away from the window and into the living room. The house was a sort of quiet that made one want to go to sleep. So Nancy tried for a nap, nodding off on the couch at around 8:30. At 9:30, someone nudged her and Nancy snapped awake.

"I'm up," she said.

"Go to bed, doll," said a voice she couldn't identify at first, so she just nodded and stood up.

The Joker gave her a slightly pitiful look as she walked up the stairs.

"She didn't even give me a kiss good night," he giggled to himself, wishing that Nancy really would have kissed him.

Nancy trudged into her room, noted Amy sleeping in her bed, and slumped into the bottom bunk on the other bed. She kicked off her shoes and tossed her jacket to the floor, not caring that spiders might crawl up the sleeves. And she slept. She didn't dream, she just dropped off into a listless, heavy sleep and stayed that way for about 5 hours. When she woke, Amy was still in bed, but awake.

"Hey," Nancy said sleepily.

Amy turned her head a little and smiled. "Hey," she said.

"How's your face feeling?" Nancy asked.

"Like someone hit me with a bat," Amy said, staring up at the top bunk. "A big aluminum bat. And then they did it three or four more times and left me," then she added, "And they were laughing, too. Sort of that "I feel as if I've accomplished something beneficial for the world" laugh."

"Wow," Nancy said. "What a bastard. The one who hit you with the big aluminum bat, I mean."

"You know it was Victoria, right?" Amy asked, suddenly concerned that the cold temperatures in the freezer had somehow damaged Nancy's brain.

"Yes," Nancy laughed. "I know. She hit you with a gun, too. Not a bat. You know that, right?"

Amy smirked and took a long breath through her mouth.

"You wanna get up?" Nancy asked.

"Sure," Amy said after a moment of thought.

"Okay," Nancy said.

She got up and pulled her shoes on, then her jacket, and finally ruffled her hair a bit and watched Amy nudge herself onto her elbows. Nancy cocked her head to one side and gave a crooked grin as Amy lifted herself up on the heels of her hands. She pulled herself up into a sitting position, fought the lights that flashed behind her eyes, and scooted over to the edge of the bed. Nancy held out a hand and Amy took it, slowly swinging her feet over the edge of the bed. Her feet settled on the floor and Nancy slowly hoisted Amy to her feet.

"Tah-dah," she said.

Amy huffed a laugh and swing her arm around Nancy's shoulder.

"Now I need help down the stairs," Amy said.

Nancy smiled and grabbed Amy's jacket as they walked out of the room. Amy shrugged the jacket on and started her dizzying decent down the stairs, Nancy's shoulder a reassuring handhold. Once downstairs, they found that most of the boys had been up for at least half an hour. Mike started applauding.

"Shut up Mike," Amy grated. "It hurts my head."

Mike stopped his applause so abruptly that he laughed at himself. Nancy rolled her eyes and smiled at him as she dropped Amy, very lightly, onto the couch next to her brother. Jason smiled at both of them and patted Amy's leg. Mike gave Nancy a congratulatory golf-clap when she turned around. Nancy bowed her head a couple of times and fell into the seat next to him.

"Where's J?" she asked.

"Upstairs," Mike said. "Probably talking to Scarecrow or something."

"I think he's asleep," Jason said, sounding a little surprised at himself and the idea.

"Boss sleeps?" Bruce chuckled.

Nancy laughed a little and asked what was for breakfast.

/|\

The Joker _was_ asleep. But only so. Every time the house would creak, someone would walk down the stairs, or laugh too loudly in the living room, his eyes would snap open, he'd stare around the room, then roll over and go back to sleep. The process would repeat itself over and over until he finally decided to tell sleep to fuck off. He then laid in bed and thought about getting up and taking a shower, or going downstairs to make Nancy feel uncomfortable in her own skin. Then he just thought about Nancy. Wonderful, wonderful Nancy; all lips and blush and tongue and moan and-

"I think I'll go downstairs," he said to himself.

So he did. He fumbled into his clothes and pulled on his jacket as he walked out the door.

"It's getting fuckin' cold," he told himself. The floor boards creaked and moaned under his feet and he said, "The whole damn house is gonna fall apart."

/|\

Victoria woke up at exactly the same time as Nancy without knowing it. She sat up on the unfamiliar bed and tested the springs. She bounced out of bed and walked across the room to a mirror. She would have gaped at her reflection, had it not been for the large amount of bandages holding her lips closed.

Her hair was matted with dried blood and a good bit of it was missing around the crown of her head. Both of her eyes were disturbingly bloodshot and blackened. Her cheeks (or what she could see of them) and forehead were terribly bruised. The shirt she had been wearing for the past few days was completely soaked in blood and covered in grass and dirt. Her neck was bruised and scabbed over where she had scraped against the ground with all its rock and roots. Looking away from her reflection and down at the rest of herself, Victoria shuddered at the yellow-brown bruises and gashes that covered her arms and wrists. She looked like a car wreck victim.

Victoria hugged herself and heaved a single sob before noticing a note on the bedside table. She picked it up and read the small line of writing:

_Victoria, _

_You've no idea how much I appreciate what you're doing. I will do everything in my power to obtain retribution for the both of us. When you want to talk, I'll most likely be downstairs in the bar. I hope you slept well. _

_-Gambol_

Victoria smiled behind her bandages and her eyes swam with tears. She wiped them away lightly and walked out of her room. A cold draft swam down the hall at her and she rubbed her sore arms tenderly. She paced down the hallway nervously and eyed the peeling wallpaper and closed doors. She was obviously in an inn that was set over a pub or small restaurant. The doors led to rooms where people could spend the night if they were extremely desperate.

Victoria found the staircase and stumbled down it, suddenly finding herself in a lounge. Several men in nice suits were gathered around a bar on the right end of the room. On the left end of the room was another -empty- bar and a pool table.

"Ah! Victoria!" called someone from the right side of the room.

Victoria snapped up and stared, wide-eyed at the group of people to her far right. A gracious looking Gambol was walking towards her, arms open, welcoming. Victoria smiled at him as best she could, then winced when the stitches on her face pulled.

"I hope you slept well," Gambol smiled. Victoria noticed the pale, ragged scar that stuck out against his dark face and cocked her head to one side in a sort of realization: they were the same. She smiled, lightly this time to avoid the uncomfortable feeling in her cheeks.

Remembering what Gambol had said to her, she nodded. She had slept relatively well considering the night/morning she had had.

"Wonderful," Gambol smiled. "I bet you'd like a bath. Hm?"

Victoria looked down at herself with a nod and smiled again when Gambol took her gently by the arm and led her back up the stairs. Victoria took another look at the peeling wallpaper on the walls and the frayed, sad rugs on the floor. They were scarlet and gold; they had color and life to them. She looked back on her days at the Home and blinked. It would be better here, she thought.

Gambol eased her into a bright, warm bathroom and started the warm water in the tub.

"Try not to get your bandages wet," he said. "It'll make your face cold." He smiled and walked towards the door, offering her privacy. "The towels are in here when you're done. I'll have some warmer clothes set out for you- they'll be in the room you woke up in. Alright?"

Victoria nodded and said something through the gauze that sounded like, "'Ank oo."

""Thank you"?" Gambol asked. Victoria nodded. Gambol smiled again and said, "No, no, Victoria. Thank _you_."

He closed the door behind himself and left Victoria to stew in the flattery and a kind of hospitality she hadn't felt in years. She shed her sticky, muddy clothes and sank into the warm, steamy water. She dabbed at her face with a washrag and scrubbed the rest of herself with a loofa. She shaved and -carefully- washed her hair. Not wanting to sit in her own dirt and blood, she pulled herself out of the luke-warm water as soon as she was finished and wrapped herself in one of the fluffy towels in the cabinet Gambol had pointed out. With a quick glance down the hall, she dashed back to her room to find that a warm set of clothes had been set out for her. She pulled on the clean jeans, warm turtleneck sweater and fuzzy shoes.

Victoria wrapped her arms around herself again and looked in the mirror. I should have done this weeks ago, she thought to herself, before Nancy came along and ruined everything.

/|\

**Trying to pump out chapters as fast as I can. The problem isn't writer's block or anything, its just my lack of internet. This chapter wasn't as exciting as the last few, but I just wanted to throw in a little bit of info on Vicky's situation. Hope you liked it anyway. **

**-Jess**

**AND TO WHOEVER JASMINE!!! IS: Thank you? (creepy knife wielding babies...?)**


	40. Cannabis

Dennis Meek was very confused, and slightly worried. He had, sometime during the course of the week, received an invitation to a very fancy restaurant in Gotham's business district. The invitation had been anonymous, but Dennis -never one to disregard a chance to see the better side of Gotham- had accepted it anyway, arriving at the restaurant at the time posted on the letter.

He stared around the room, admiring it's vaulted ceilings, chandeliers, and other fanciful decor. Persian rugs were set under every table, in the large warm waiting room, and down the little hallway that led to the actual dining area. Oil paintings and busts lined the walls and light music was coming from a far corner of the room, played by a live jazz band. Dennis admired it all, soaking in the class and prestige (because he couldn't produce or maintain any on his own).

The light music stopped for a moment, and a new song started up. Dennis accepted another glass of complementary wine. He stared across the room and down the little hall that led to the waiting room: a black man in a very nice suit was speaking to the maître d'. The master of reservations nodded and pointed down the hall at Dennis, who froze. The other man smiled and beckoned for someone standing behind him. A girl with long black hair stepped forward and hugged herself. The man draped his arm around her shoulder and led her down the little hall. Dennis noticed something about the man's face: there was something wrong with it. The girl wore a scarf and oversized sunglasses, a loose shouldered sweater and designer jeans.

The man approached Dennis's table and smiled, then winced when the jagged scar on his face tugged. The girl hunched a little and scooted closer to the man.

"May I sit?" said the man, placing his hand on one of the chairs.

"Are you the guy who invited me here?" Dennis asked. The man winced at his accent.

"Yes," said the man. "My name is Gambol. I invited you here to talk."

"About what?" Dennis asked.

Gambol didn't answer at first. He pulled a chair out for the girl next to him and then seated himself. Dennis looked at him apprehensively.

"Your financial situation," Gambol finally answered.

"How do you know about my financial situation?" Dennis demanded.

"The same way I knew about where to find you and send my invitation," Gambol smiled. Dennis goggled back at him. "But that's not important. What's important is how you plan on supporting your daughter once you get her back-"

"How do you know about Nancy?" Dennis inquired.

"I watch the news, Mr. Meek," Gambol replied politely, wincing at the tinge of Dennis's twang.

Dennis slumped back in his seat and felt stupid. Of course he knew about Nancy, she was all over the place.

"Look, mister, I gotta be straight with ya'," Dennis said meekly, "I really don't care... about that kind of stuff."

"I know that, too," Gambol reassured. "And even if Nancy isn't returned-" Gambol smiled at the girl next to him, who giggled, "-you'll need to support yourself in Gotham. You had to quit your job in New Mexico, correct?"

Dennis nodded and tried to ask how Gambol how he knew so much, then decided against it. "I did," he said.

"And I have a feeling you'll be needing some cash flow sooner or later," Gambol started. "I'm here to help you with that."

"How's that?" Dennis asked.

He was suddenly terrified. He had started putting two and two together and getting a few things straight. He remembered hearing a few things on the news since taking residence in Gotham. One of those things being the mob and its bosses: what they did, who they killed, which ones had been killed within the last few months. He remembered hearing the name Gambol and suddenly understood.

"You're from the mob, right?" Dennis choked out. Gambol smiled and nodded. "A-and who's she?" Dennis pointed an accusing finger at the girl sitting next to Gambol.

"This?" Gambol asked, looking at the girl. "This is Victoria. She'd introduce herself had it not been for a recent... accident. Or a run in, I should say, with not the most reputable of people."

Victoria huffed and looked around at the tables.

Dennis gulped and stared at Victoria, who looked at him. He looked back at Gambol.

"Wh-what did you h-have in mind?" Dennis stuttered.

Gambol smiled very slowly, Victoria started to giggle.

/|\

Nancy sat on the couch and stared blankly at the TV screen. Mike and Bruce were playing Halo again (surprise, surprise). Amy was sitting on the couch with Jason, who had his arm wrapped around her shoulder. The Joker was upstairs, staring at the blueprints of the first few floors of Wayne Industries. Nancy took to staring at the ceiling. She thought tiredly.

_I wonder if Bruce knows about me and J. I hope not- or maybe it'd be good if he knew... I dunno. _Nancy shrugged and blinked hard. _I hope Mike never figures it out- I don't know what I'd do with myself. Maybe it wouldn't bother him. Sure, it'd freak him out- I know if -say- Carol was having an affair with the Joker I'd be pretty upset to start with. Then I'd have to go along with it after a while. What do I know, though? That's one reaction I don't want to see come out of Mike: terrified, somewhat disturbed confusion. _Nancy sighed and thought about the Joker. She smiled, then frowned. _I wonder if he got the message when I said, "I want this"? Hope he didn't take it like "I want this" as in "I want what we have sweety, darling- _Nancy started laughing at herself. Mike looked back at her,remembered that she was tired, and figured that she was just losing her mind a little from sleep deprivation.

Nancy went on thinking. _No, it was more like "I want this" as in "I want you to do really bad, illegal things to me." _Nancy chuckled again. _I could do with another one of those bathroom make out sessions- I love that look Amy gave me that one time. That "Oh, yeah, you _so _weren't making out" look. I laughed a little... that was good. _

Then, Nancy thought about all the times she had found herself pressed against a wall with her arms pinned above her head (or at her sides) and squirmed a little. She wanted to be pinned to something again. Amy would have made a disapproving look at her had it not been for the fact that she couldn't move most of her face. Nancy just grinned at her.

"When d'ya think we're gonna make Wayne Industries go boom?" Mike asked.

"I'unno," Nancy shrugged. "Whenever he gets in the mood I guess."

Bruce gave up on beating Mike and handed Nancy the X-Box controller. Nancy sat on the coffee table next to Mike and started playing after Mike adjusted a few settings. The table gave a little creak- and fell apart. The room was quiet for a second, then, Bruce started to laugh. Then, Nancy and Mike started laughing.

"Hu'... what're we gonna sit on now?" Mike asked.

Nancy shrugged and sat up in the table's remains, waiting for Mike to start playing again.

/|\

There was a ruckus down in the basement of Monica Webber's house- or, what used to be Monica Webber's house. Thanks to one of Gambol's shady lawyers, the house now belonged to Dennis Meek, who was sitting in the kitchen, finalizing a few details about his deal with Gambol. And after all was said, signed, and shook over, Gambol left with Victoria hanging on his arm.

Dennis ran his clammy hands over his face and shivered. He explained the whole deal over to himself over again.

The house had been signed over to Dennis (along with the rest of Monica's property). In return, Dennis would make his own pay and share it with Gambol 50/50. The only problem? The profit would come out of drug sales. Gambol had hired a few people to put together a greenhouse set up in Dennis's new basement. And what would be grown in the basement? Marijuana. This is what bothered Dennis. The reason it bothered him was because it was so tempting to just smoke up the whole crop and forget about Nancy and Gambol and his deal. And why was is tempting? Because Dennis had felt the wonderful flight of intoxication. That was what his MIP had been for in high school: minor in possession of marijuana. Besides the temptation, the though of getting caught be the police or anyone else was terrifying. That was the problem.

Dennis stood from the granite-topped breakfast bar and grabbed a beer from the refrigerator. He downed the whole thing in five seconds and sat back at the breakfast bar. He listened to the men downstairs as they put together piping and racks of pots.

The seeds and soil would be brought later that day and planted by another crew. Finally, the first crew would come back in and inspect everything before explaining to Dennis how to use all of the equipment and how to care for all the plants.

Dennis shivered again and rubbed his face. He threw away the beer bottle and headed upstairs to inspect the rest of the house.

/|\

Mike looked at the shattered remains of the coffee table.

"We should probably clean that up, huh?" he said, then looked back at the TV. They were watching the news for a change.

Everyone else shrugged in response and Nancy picked up one of the table's broken legs.

"We could use the parts to beat people with," Nancy suggested, then tossed the leg back on the floor.

Everyone shrugged again and went back to watching the news. There was a story on about sexual relationships between young students and teachers. This led on to relationships between older males and underaged females. Nancy coughed. Amy glared at her out of the corners of her eyes. Nancy laughed at her.

-

This sort of thing went on for another three days until Nancy livened things up by having a nightmare.

She had gone to bed that night after talking to Mike about Eric being sent to Arkham, seemingly in a good mood. Then, at about midnight, she started shifting. Twenty minutes later, she kicked herself out of bed, and when she hit the floor she snapped awake and sat up in a cold sweat. Amy jumped out of bed and knelt down next to Nancy, who kept touching her chest.

"What happened?" Amy said.

Nancy's hands settled on the scars on her shoulder and hip and she brought her knees to her chest. She shook her head and mumbled, "Eric..."

Amy made a pained face and wrapped her arms around Nancy's shoulders. The Joker peeked through the door.

Amy looked up and said, "She's fine. You're fine, right?" Nancy nodded and looked up at the Joker, who frowned.

That morning, the Joker caught Nancy as she walked out of her room.

"What happened last night?" he asked.

Nancy swallowed and shook her head. "It was nothing," she said. "Just a bad dream."

She started to walk away and the Joker grabbed her wrist.

"Tell me," he said.

Nancy turned to him and felt at her shoulder.

"It was Eric," she said. "I was back at school with him... when he tried to rape Carol. Except, this time I couldn't move, so he just kept stabbing me in the chest- and I watched everything and I looked down and I could see everything and he started pulling out my insides and- it was just..."

Nancy shivered and her hands moved to cover her scars. The Joker made a clicking sound with his lips and wrapped his arms around her.

"Poor babe," he cooed.

Downstairs, Mike hugged Nancy too after he demanded she tell him about her dream.

"Aw, Nancy," he sighed, then he whispered, "Why does J call you "babe"?"

"What?" Nancy asked.

"He just always calls you babe," Mike said. "It's weird."

Nancy shrugged and said, "I dunno. I'm a babe I guess?"

Mike snorted and pulled away.

"I dunno, Mike," Nancy repeated. "Maybe you should ask him."

"Ha," Mike said.

/|\

The second crew had come and gone, and the first crew did the same within an hour. Now, Dennis stood in the converted basement and stared around at all the marijuana plants. He had phoned Gambol and given him a report on the men's progress. Gambol had told him that his men were always timely. Dennis wished they weren't.

He went back upstairs and had another beer. He would call Gambol up later and ask him how all the sales would work. He gave a loud sigh and finished off his beer. He wished Nancy would show back up.

Another part of Gambol's deal was that Dennis would give Nancy away to the mob for definite lifetime security. At no cost of course. Dennis could then give up the weed selling business and settle down with a good chunk of cash to live off of. He almost felt bad for his would-be daughter, but then remembered that he was too selfish for that sort of thinking, and smiled. It'd all work out in his favor, and soon he'd be living in style. Life would be good soon.

/|\

Nancy had taken a shower and inspected herself. Her nightmare had made her anxious, so she needed some reassuring. She looked over herself and made sure there were no new gashes on her torso. Satisfied, but still a little paranoid, she touched the scars on her hip and shoulder. She sighed and leaned her head against the wall, hands still over her scars, and closed her eyes. After a while of this, she turned the shower off, peeked out the curtain, and jumped out of the tub to grab a towel. She dressed, dried her hair and took a whole 15 minutes to brush her teeth. Feeling much cleaner, she walked downstairs and found that the remains of the broken coffee table had been shoved into a corner and been replaced with a couple of chairs from the kitchen. Nancy looked at the broken table and felt bad for it.

The Joker hopped down the stairs, said, "Tonight," and walked back up the stairs.

Everyone looked at each other and said, "What?"

Nancy scrunched up her face and thought, then said, "Wayne Industries."

"Oh," everyone else said.

Nancy started giggling a little hysterically, then stopped herself before everyone could start staring at her.

-

Nancy fell asleep without realizing it and dreamed something very pleasant.

She was in the white room again. She sighed and blinked hard. Victoria and the Joker flickered into existence. Nancy frowned at them and stood up to drop out of the room as she had learned to do recently, but she stopped. She didn't know why she stopped, she just did. She watched for a moment as Victoria wound herself around the Joker and started kissing on him. The Joker started kissing back, and Nancy moved to leave again but was once again forced to stay still. Then, Nancy watched something wonderful happen. The Joker pulled something out of the air behind him and grabbed Victoria by the throat. Victoria choked and gagged as the Joker held her at arms length and pulled the gun around. He prodded Victoria in the forehead with the barrel and pulled the trigger. Victoria vanished before she hit the nonexistent floor and the Joker spat on the spot where she would have landed. Nancy grinned hugely, not really knowing why, and started to simper when the Joker looked at her, a leer playing across his face. He suddenly had a very strong hold her her hips.

"Hey, babe," he grinned. Nancy reached up to hold his face. "Help me get this taste out of my mouth wouldja?"

He kissed her.

/|\

**Poor table. **

**PS: Drugs are illegal. Don't do them. **


	41. Splendid

Nancy woke to the sound of the front door slamming. She sat straight up and stared out the partially boarded up window as the van's headlights wavered for a moment, then vanished.

"Uh oh," Nancy said.

They had left her.

/|\

Bruce and Mike had the wonderful privilege of wheeling in boxes of explosives- disguised as computer equipment. When the secretary (the woman who had recently taken up Monica Webber's job) asked them what the packages were for, Mike just shrugged and said he didn't know. Bruce just looked bored. The secretary said it was unusually late for the company to receive any packages. Mike just sighed and said he just got the job to make the money, not to explain things like this to himself and other people. The secretary, now very annoyed, simply dismissed him and pointed at the elevator.

Amy, just a few minutes previous, had the privilege of disabling all security cameras and alarms. She came in playing the part of a disgruntled computer repair employee, immediately gaining the secretary's sympathy. Amy took a moment to talk about her (fake) boyfriend and her (fake) rundown apartment. She spouted something about hating her boss and how awful the pay was, and headed towards the elevator that the suddenly soft-eyed secretary pointed out. Amy walked into the elevator with a yawn and her eyes darted around for a moment to look for a camera. She spotted it in the corner near the button panel and kept her face down and tilted away from it for the rest of the trip. She kept her face distorted: yawning, rubbing her eyes, covering his face completely and looking tired.

When she reached the appropriate floor, she immediately headed for the security room, finding the door unlocked.

"Secure," Amy huffed at the empty room.

She pulled her gloves on and grinned at the wiring and equipment. She torn into them like a cougar -a very technologically educated cougar- and was very soon seated in the security guard's chair, feet propped up on the system's control panel. She pulled out a two-way radio and spoke into it.

"She's all yours Mike," she said.

"Made fast work of that security system did you?" came Mike's static-filled response.

"Yep. Now hurry it up. Boss wants this done before midnight," Amy said. She changed the channel and found her brother's station. "How're you holding up in there Jason?"

Jason sighed and said, "Bored. Why was I not allowed inside again?"

"Because females are more approachable," Amy smiled.

"But Mike and Bruce-" Jason whined.

"You get to pick us up when we're all done," Amy said, "then head back and pick up Nancy and boss."

"Yeah," Jason sighed. He put his radio down and slumped down further in his seat. He had been given the job of driving the getaway vehicle. And it was boring him.

Back in the security room, Amy was given an update by Mike: they were in the elevator. Amy told him to call back if anything went wrong. Or when it was time to leave.

-

Bruce strolled out of the elevator when it hit the top floor and rolled his cart over to one side of the room. He took a moment to shrug his shoulders and try and loosen up under the uncomfortably tight UPS worker suit. He trudged over to the window and looked down and out over the city. He grinned at the maze of streets and the towering, glittering skyscrapers. He looked to his right and squinted, searching for the somewhat inconspicuous white van where Jason was perched, brooding. To his left was another row and tangle of streets and neon lights. He gave the scene one last look over and went to work pulling explosives out of their boxes and placing them around the corners of the room.

Meanwhile, Mike was on the fifth floor doing the same thing, minus the fantastic view. He grunted as he set the last box of dynamite in one corner of the room. With one last glance around the room and another quick look at his cart, Mike headed down the hall a few rooms and did the same thing. Once he was done with all of the rooms on the fifth floor, he heaved a tired sigh, wiped the sweat from his brow and headed back towards the elevator. As he stepped inside, he nodded to Bruce, who had been on the top floor.

"Last stop," Mike said, "basement."

Bruce nodded and watched the little dial ease its way towards the letter B, which was the basement. Bruce suddenly wondered why Wayne Industries, being such a big place, didn't have more than one basement. He shrugged it off and stepped out of the elevator when it hit the basement floor.

The basement wasn't necessarily dark, so much as it was unused looking. A fluorescent light flickered at one end of the room; boxes were piled on top of one another; files stuck out of filing cabinets; several outdated computer monitors were pushed to one side of the room. Bruce sneered at it all and turned back to Mike.

"Nice," Mike said.

"Dank an' nasty's more like it," said Bruce, and gave an ironic grin.

Mike shrugged and opened up one of the boxes of disguised explosives. Bruce asked for the radio and called for Amy.

"Time to leave the coop, birdy," he said, "we're almost finished down here."

"See you guys in the van," Amy said.

She left the security room and found the elevator. Once inside, she took to contorting her face again, though there was no reason considering all the cameras were dead. She trudged sleepily across the lobby, bidding the secretary a tired farewell. Outside, Jason flashed his lights to give Amy an idea about where he was. She trotted over to the van, knocked on the window and hopped into the passenger's seat when Jason unlocked the door.

Down in the basement, Mike and Bruce finished unpacking what was left of the explosives and checked that everything was in place. Seeing that it was, they rolled their carts back into the elevator and pressed the button for the first floor. The secretary sneered at them as they left, even when they offered a somewhat sincere _good night_.

"And good luck," Mike grinned as he ditched his trolly in an alleyway.

Bruce rolled his into the alley too, ducking behind a dumpster and popping up not a second later holding a plastic gas can.

Mike threw his arms in the air and said," What the hell's up with you and setting things on fire?"

"Fingerprints," Bruce defended as he started dousing the trollies in gasoline.

In truth, Bruce really just liked setting things on fire.

Once the trollies were ablaze, Mike and Bruce ducked out of the alley and found the van when Jason flashed the lights again.

"Why's everyone gone except the secretary?" Mike asked as he shed his uniform.

"It's Thanksgiving," Amy said.

"Poor secretary," Mike said with a sympathetic shake of his head. Though he really didn't care.

There was a ripping noise when Bruce tried, and failed, to simply pull his uniform off over his head. Instead, the whole shirt ripped in half and left Bruce feeling frustrated. Mike and Bruce changed back into their normal clothes as Amy called her boss. He had the honor of ending Wayne Industries.

/|\

Nancy sat for a moment in disappointment. Why had they left her? She wanted to help. She wanted to take out Wayne Industries. She sighed and rubbed her head, which was throbbing. She stood and walked into the kitchen, then walked to the stairs.

"Wish I coulda gone, too," she sighed sleepily. "Fuck... my head."

The hall stretched away, ending with a boarded up window, lined with doors, and Nancy eyed the door to her room with sleep and sheets on her mind. A suddenly silvery stab of light drew her attention. She looked up from the floor and blinked at the light coming from the Joker's room and gaped when he stuck his head out and looked at her.

"Hey, babe," he grinned.

Nancy continued to gape.

"S'matter?" the Joker asked, frowning.

"You didn't go?" Nancy gawked.

"If I did then you're seeing things," the Joker offered.

"That seems more probable," Nancy said, shaking her head.

"C'mere," the Joker nodded for her.

Nancy shook her head to clear it and slouched down the hall to the Joker's room. Inside, she noticed it was warmer compared to the rest of the house. She then noted the pillow that had been duct taped over the window and gave a crooked little grin.

"I like the insolation," she said.

The Joker looked at her, then at the window, then back down at her and grinned.

"Whatcha doin'?" Nancy asked.

"Thinkin'," the Joker said, slouching over to his bed and sitting on it.

"'Bout what?" Nancy asked.

The Joker grinned at her.

When he didn't answer, Nancy guessed he either didn't want to talk about it, or he was just trying to get on her nerves. She clenched up her fists and leaned against the dresser, which was covered in an assortment of the Joker's knives. Spotting one that looked recently used, she ran her finger over it and picked it up.

"Which one did you use on Victoria?" Nancy asked, savoring the thought of Victoria rolling around in pain. She shook her head.

"That one," the Joker said.

Nancy blinked down at the knife in her hand. She grinned without really knowing it, and it made the Joker grin, too.

"So," Nancy said, "are we just gonna wait here until everyone gets back? Or what?"

The Joker stared at her until she shifted her weight uncomfortably and spoke. "We'll wait here," he said, "until they get everything set up... then we'll go back out there and watch."

"When's it gonna go off?" Nancy asked, looking up at him.

"When I want it to."

Nancy huffed out a little laugh and put the knife down.

"I think I made a bad choice by hiring sane people," the Joker said abruptly.

"Why do you say that?" Nancy smiled.

The Joker bit his tongue and went on. "Your friend Mike."

"Ha!" Nancy barked. "That's just Mike. He's a good kid- a moron, sometimes, but a good kid. Loyal as a damn hound, too. But stupid."

"Obviously," the Joker said. He leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees.

"Bruce isn't too bad," Nancy said, "I don't think."

"Techies are kinda whiny," the Joker said.

"Jason just thinks he's better than everyone else," Nancy started, "but I notice that behavior's dimmed a bit since you took care of Vic. They're scared of you..."

"That's how it should be," the Joker sneered.

Nancy smiled at him and said, "You could always fire 'em."

"Or kill 'em." The Joker grinned at the prospect.

Nancy shook her head, then rubbed it: it was still pounding.

"S'matter, doll?" the Joker asked.

Nancy shook her head again and said, "Nothing."

"Liar," he snickered.

Nancy shrugged it off and stared around the room, loving how dark it was. It would have been brighter had the window been uncovered, but, thinking about it, the glare of neon and head lights didn't seem too appealing to Nancy right now. Her thoughts wandered for a moment on the view that Mike and the rest were getting at Wayne Industries. She heard that the view from the top of Wayne Enterprises was breathtaking. She then wondered if anyone would care about the view and quickly came to the conclusion that they wouldn't.

The silvery light Nancy had seen had come from what little spaces were exposed by the dents in pillow's sides. Light leaked in from the outside and would shift when cars would drive by.

Suddenly, without warning, a thought struck Nancy: the house was empty, and she was in the Joker's room; they were alone. She looked at the Joker as she thought this. He, of course, had been thinking it the whole time, he had just been waiting for her to figure it out. When she finally figured it out, and she gave him that look of revelation, he grinned so wide that his scars pulled in complaint.

Nancy swallowed hard and sucked her lips into her mouth, gnawing on them until they started to ache. The sudden image of herself being pressed against the bathroom wall crossed her mind/ the Joker running his tongue across her stitches/ torturous half-kisses/ hitched breathing-

Nancy shook her head.

"You look a little... distracted, babe," said the Joker's voice from somewhere outside Nancy's Happy Place.

Nancy blinked and stared down at the floor, hoping the Joker hadn't noticed her staring at him. He had, obviously.

"Whatcha thinkin' about, gorgeous?"

Nancy's eyes wound around and looked at him. A knot rolled around in her stomach.

_Like you don't know._

Nancy shrugged and licked her lips. The Joker sniggered at her and stood. Nancy shrank, but didn't stop looking at him.

"Have I ever told you," he started, taking one step towards her, "how much fun it's going to be when you lose it?"

Nancy shook her head and said, "Nuh-uh."

"Fun as hell," the Joker told her, taking another two steps and closing the gap between them.

Nancy shivered and swallowed the giggle that tried to crawl up her throat. She pressed her lips together and sucked them into her mouth, pressed them in place with her teeth so she wouldn't grin. But all the swallowing and biting in the world couldn't stop the thoughts running through her head: a sick combination of bloody bullets and steamy windows; scarlet ooze and the sound of smacking lips; the adrenaline rush kick-started by the sound of gunfire and the ache of clenching insides and squirming outsides.

"I know _what_ you're think_ing_," the Joker sang.

Nancy let go of her lips and let the grin spread across her face like a little wildfire. The giggle turned into a dark little chuckle that made the Joker chuckle back.

"I thought so," he growled.

He yanked the front of her shirt and kisses her giggling lips. The giggling ceased, and Nancy fumbled to grab the Joker's tie.

_Oh God, closer. Please closer. Closer... closer... closer... It's cold J, keep me warm. _

Nancy pulled away very slightly and said, "Sorry I bit you."

The Joker chuckled hysterically against her mouth and kissed her, shuddering when Nancy ran her tongue along the inside of his bottom lip. He pulled away and cackled, leaning forward again and leaving a wet trail of kisses down her shoulder. Nancy closed her eyes and bit her tongue until she tasted copper.

A shock of pain made Nancy yelp and shove the Joker away. He was laughing. She grabbed at whatever was throbbing and pulled her hand away to look at it: she was bleeding.

"You fucker!" she laughed. "You bit me!"

The Joker tore her jacket off and pinned her to the wall by the collar of her shirt.

"We're even," he said.

He kissed her again and cradled one side of her face while the other hand busied itself sliding around Nancy's waist. His fingers found scar tissue and he smiled when Nancy's hips bucked against his hand.

He pressed his lips against her ear and whispered, "Like that, gorgeous?"

_Fuck, fuck, fuck. Yes. More... again. _

He did it again, and Nancy shoved him against one of the posts of his bed. He gave a her a confused look, but that quickly vanished when Nancy jumped at him and sent the both of them crashing against the bed, which creaked angrily at them. The Joker used the momentum to his advantage and pinned Nancy beneath him. He peeled her shirt away and started kissing down her neck again, loving all the little noises that Nancy started making. He licked what little blood there was still seeping out of the bite mark on Nancy's collar bone and went back to kissing further and further down her chest. His fingers brushed over her hip again.

An odd noise emanated from the dresser. Nancy and the Joker didn't hear it.

The Joker kissed down to the hem of Nancy's jeans and let his tongue slide under to run against the scar there. Nancy gasped and tugged his hair. He giggled and pulled himself back up to kiss her again. He sucked lightly on her bottom lip until Nancy started pulling on his vest. He pulled it off.

Another noise came from the dresser. Nancy and the Joker still didn't hear it. It kind of sounded like humming.

The Joker pulled away the strap of Nancy's bra and licked at the scar. Nancy let a moan growl out from her throat and bit her tongue when the Joker started kissing up to her ear again. She ran her hands up his chest and grinned when she felt the muscles squirming under his shirt. She yanked at his tie. He chuckled in her ear and pulled it off.

_Hum-hum-hum._

Nancy heard it this time, but she didn't care much for it and chose to ignore it. The Joker grabbed her hips and traced her jugular with his tongue.

_Hum-hum-hum._

"J?"

"Mmm?"

"What's that sound?"

"Which one? You or me?"

"That humming."

_Hum-hum-hum._

The Joker detached himself from Nancy's neck and sat up, careful not to crush the little blonde girl beneath him.

_Hum-hum-hum._

"_God. Damn it._" The Joker bounded off the bed like an angry... something. A very angry something.

The very angry something answered its phone.

"What?" he growled.

Amy, who was on the other line, was very taken aback, but replied, "We're going to be home in, like, five minutes... So-"

The Joker hung up and dropped his phone on the dresser, misplacing several knives and sending them to the floor. Nancy sat up groggily and pulled the Joker's tie from around her neck. The Joker leaned against the dresser and fumed at his knives like it was their fault that his fun-time with Nancy had been interrupted. Nancy stood and looked down at herself, huffing at all the paint she was covered in. She moved forward and draped the Joker's tie around his neck, wound her arms around his chest. She stood on the tips of her toes and kissed up his neck. He sighed and his shoulders slackened.

"We should probably clean you up, huh?" he asked, looking up in mirror at her.

Nancy gave her reflection a crooked smile and stepped around to lean against the part of the dresser closest to the door. The Joker reached back and pulled Nancy's shirt out from the tangle of sheets. Seeing that the collar was covered in blood and paint, the Joker frowned at it and threw it back on the bed. He reached over instead and grabbed Nancy by the jeans and led her into the bathroom. He wiped all the paint away with the least disgusting washrag he could find and shooed her away in time to here the van's tires crunch against the gravel in front of the home. Nancy skittered away and grabbed another shirt as the front door slammed and pulled it on just as Amy burst through the door to the room.

"How'd it go?" Nancy asked, acting very unsurprised by Amy's banging around.

Amy, looking extremely confused and slightly disappointed that she hadn't caught Nancy in the act of doing something she shouldn't with the Joker, jerked back and replied, "Fine. What have _you _been doing?"

"Sleeping," Nancy said, looking insulted.

"Then why are you changing shirts?" Amy asked accusingly.

"Because I've been wearing the other one for the past three days," Nancy answered flatly.

Amy rolled the thought around in her head for about half a minute and finally said, "So you were just sleeping?"

"Just sleeping," Nancy nodded. "What else was there to do?"

Amy huffed in agitation. Nancy shook her head at her and bent down to zip her bag back up. She took this moment to grin like a crazy person and swallow another laugh that tried to jump out of her lungs.

"Nothing else?" Amy asked as Nancy straightened up.

"Nothing else," Nancy lied, turning around.

Amy eyed her suspiciously until the Joker stalked by. The grin he threw at Nancy made her look down at the floor to hide the smile that decided to creep across her face. Amy didn't notice.

"Lets go downstairs," Nancy suggested, taking Amy by the arm.

In the living room, where it was darker and a little louder, and the sad remains of the coffee table stared out at everyone from the corner of the room, Mike and Bruce were just settling down on the couch.

"We have to go," said Amy, jabbing both her thumbs in the direction of the door.

"No we don't," said the Joker.

Amy dropped her arms and looked at him. Nancy looked very sadly at the coffee table.

"Why not?" she almost asked before being interrupted by her boss again.

"Employees get there at 9-ish," he said, swooping around and sitting on the love seat. "We'll go out at 10 and blow the whole thing away."

"Oh," said Bruce, reaching into his back pocket and pulling out a news paper, "have a look. Had to trade a homeless guy for my uniform to get this. It's from when we did Wal-Mart."

He tossed it to the Joker who read the front page: **60 DEAD IN WAL MART HOLDUP**. The Joker laughed and read through the article. Nancy walked around him and read over his shoulder. She added up the death toll: 20 caught in cross fire, 16 clowns (death by not-so-friendly fire or falling head first off of towering shelving), 10 cops, 2 detectives, and 12 bomb squad members.

"Damn," Nancy said, running her hand through her hair and leaning away.

_We didn't even do anything. -path of destruction, death in our wakes. _

She walked to the window and peered through one of the chinks in the wood: gray, swirly clouds were put into relief by all the light thrown up by the city; it looked like it would snow soon. 

"So," said Mike, "since we're here until 10-ish, I'm gonna sleep."

Nancy looked up and watched him roll over on his side on the couch and almost instantly fall asleep. She smirked and looked back at the coffee table. One of the legs lolled to one side and seemed to be trying to look at her pathetically. Nancy looked away.

Bruce, Amy and Jason headed back upstairs, talking very happily of sleep.

-

Ten o'clock came unusually quickly. Mike was yanked unceremoniously from the couch and Bruce, Amy, and Jason stumbled drunkenly down the stairs, donning masks and guns. Everyone piled into the van and strapped themselves inside and readied themselves for the jerking, bumpy, scary ride. Nancy sat next to Amy, who kept glancing at the former suspiciously. Mike sat in between Bruce and Jason. The Joker drove.

The trip lasted little more than half an hour, and very quickly, the van came to a sudden -and somewhat painful- stop. Seat belts made stretching noises and everyone in the back gave a unanimous _oof_. Everyone filed out quickly, guns hidden and heads down, hoods covering faces. The only one who didn't seem to care about whether or not anyone could see him was the Joker, who looked lazily down the street as he strode into the rundown, multistory hotel he was pacing giddily towards. Once inside, he shot the man at the front desk when he stood to scream. The group galloped up the stairs to the top floor and found their way onto the roof.

The Joker checked his watch. Nancy hugged herself and watched her icy breath wisp away with the breeze. Amy walked as close to the edge as she dared and peered down at the cars that swished by. Jason pulled out a pair of binoculars from a bag he had brought along and looked through them: Wayne Industries' windows were alight and, looking closer, Jason could see cars and taxis pulling to and from the front entrance.

"She's full up, sir," said Jason, pulling the binoculars away and looking somberly at the Joker.

Nancy looked at Jason, at Wayne Industries, at the Joker, who grinned. She wrapped her arms further around herself and stared back at the colossal tower in front of her. Jason looked through the binoculars again.

"Ready when you a-" Jason started.

There was a very quiet click, and Nancy looked over in time to watch the Joker shove a small remote detonator back in his pocket. She turned to watch the show.

/|\

Somewhere in Wayne Industries, a woman bent over a box and pulled it open just in time to have it explode in her face. This explosion was on the fifth floor. Nine other explosions like this one went off on the same floor, as they did on the third, seventh, and ninth floor, the top floor, and the basement.

/|\

Nancy pulled her mask off and let it hang around her neck. Next to her, the Joker started cackling and dancing, jumping up and down on the spot then stopping to enjoy the view for a moment. Mike whistled, pushing the thought of murder and arson out of his mind. Bruce joined him. Amy and Jason looked at each other, thinking: What a waste of our technological knowhow.

The glass windows trembled and shattered, fire spilling from the open holes and licking at the air. The creak of steel could be heard for at least a mile. The building seemed to bend itself in half, attempted to fall over, but just ended up tipping around as the top half fell through the bottom half. People fled in crowds, screaming and bleeding and burning.

Nancy asked for the binoculars and looked through them. The little pin pricks of people were brought into focus and she could actually see bits of glass sticking out of people's arms and backs; their faces bled. Their clothes were singed or burning. Women's hairspray drowned hair burned with a particular sparkle that fascinated Nancy. She looked back up at the building as air conditioning units fell off of the roof and tumbled to the ground, crashing against the street and crushing cars.

"Wow," Nancy breathed.

The shock wave hit them about four seconds after the actual explosion, shaking the building under their feet.

"Lemme see, babe," said the Joker, holding a hand out for the binoculars. Nancy handed them to him and continued to stare.

The buildings and cars around Wayne Industries were blown away, cars rolling end over end, buildings shuddering and shattering. The whole city was suddenly alive with screaming sirens and people. The building collapsed with a glorious noise and debris and fire flared out into the street in a cloud of hell. Terror spread quickly and the wounded fled, leaving the dead and dying to fend for themselves. The roof and parts of the top floor finally made contact with the ground, and glass shattered into the streets; steel bent and creaked, splintering and shattering under the pressure and heat. Plumes of smoke and ash billowed into the sky, chased away by fire.

Fire engines and police cars screamed onto the scene from every direction. Uniformed men and woman spilled out of the emergency vehicles and filled the streets. A small, quiet part of Nancy's mind wondered if her uncle was down there, but that voice was quickly squelched down by the voice that was happily screaming at the destruction. A burst of trapped fire roared out at the crowd in the street.

The Joker laughed again. Nancy covered her mouth with her hand and smiled.

It was splendid.


	42. Coffee Table Chatter

**I didn't get too many reviews for my last chapter... I hope you guys liked it... I really do. Review please. I really appreciate them- the positive ones anyway. Review, review, review. I only bite if you're shitty. If you don't like it, don't comment- move on. If you like it, then by all means! They're my drive.**

**Thanks. **

/|\

Amy bolted from the van as soon as it pulled up to the Home. She streaked upstairs and into the bathroom. She threw up. Jason and Mike dashed after her and left Bruce to slouch inside and Nancy and the Joker to chat pleasantly about the demolition.

"Some people just don't understand art," Nancy said. "I thought it was very nice, by the way," she added.

The Joker looked over his shoulder at her and laughed that high eerie laugh that would have given most people nightmares. Nancy had learned to just smile with it.

"Glad you liked it babe," he said. "You can help with the next one if you want."

Nancy said she'd think about it. She didn't mind watching murder too much anymore, but committing it was still debatable. She thought for a moment about all the people she'd like to murder, if she decided to: Naomi Litz and her friend Phyllis Wilt, Shay Myers and the rest of her clique (groups of girls from Nancy's school), Eric (obviously), Dennis Meek, Gambol, and maybe Victoria if she somehow managed to live through the Joker's torture session.

A pang of unease struck Nancy as she closed the front door.

"What if Victoria's still alive?" she asked the Joker as they ascended the stairs.

The Joker shrugged and said, "I'll just track her down again and finish her off. I'll take my time, then," he added quietly to himself, though Nancy heard him. She choked down her question about helping him kill Victoria.

"You can help if you want," the Joker said, making Nancy stop in her tracks, "for hatred's sake-" he rounded on her, "-'cause I know you want to. It's all in your head, but you want it."

Nancy opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out, and the Joker stalked away giggling.

Nancy leaned against the wall and considered this.

_It would be nice, wouldn't it? "No, Nancy! I'm sorry- I'm so sorry! P-please-! Don't hurt me... please. No! No! No!" Scream, scream. Holler, holler. Whimper, whimper, cry. Die. Slowly, painfully. _

Nancy grinned and turned to walk down the hall and check on Amy.

_The same goes for Dennis, too. "No, Nancy... I'm sorry I left you and your mom! I'm sorry. Please forgive me, Nancy. Please! No! Stop! Help me! Help! Hel-" Gag, sputter, crunch, groan, die. Slowly, painfully. _

Nancy leaned into the bathroom and smiled at Amy, who stared at her in what might have been terror. Or maybe it was disgust. Nancy smiled at Mike, too, who managed a weak smile. She turned and walked down into the living room. She sat on the couch and stared at the shattered remains of the coffee table.

_And those bitches from school. Shay and Naomi and Phyllis and all the rest of them. Tie 'em up and set them on fire. I could use hairspray- it has a nice sparkle to it. It's pretty. Like a sparkler at the Fourth of July parties. Scream, scream, cry, cry, cry, scream some more, melt, shrivel, scream, sparkle. Hm._

Nancy went into the kitchen and sat on the island. She decided to look through all the drawers and see if there was anything worth finding in them.

"How would Vicky go?" she whispered to herself. "With knives, I think," she said, "and Gambol... Gambol I'd shoot. A lot, like his men did to Jeremy and all the people at my school. And Dennis... I think I'll throw him off of a building, or beat his brains in with something. See how they compare to Mom's.

"I miss mom," she said, looking thoughtfully at the ceiling. "I hope she made it to heaven alright." She sat cross legged on the floor and pulled open a drawer full of random this-and-thats. She started pulling them out. "And Eric would go slowly. I'd find something nasty and painful for him. Maybe something like Dennis. Throw him off of the top of the school... maybe."

She pulled out a jar full of old coins and started sorting through them. She heard someone walk down the stairs.

/|\

Bruce Wayne sat in the back seat of his Rolls-Royce, his feet hanging out the door and his face in his shaky hands. His car was parked across the street from where Wayne Enterprises used to stand. That's not to say it wasn't still there; it was just a heap of twisted metal and smoldering rubble now. Alfred stood next to him, slumped over, horrified, pale. He braced himself against the roof of the car and covered his eyes: he didn't want to see. Jim Gordon rushed over to them.

"Mr. Wayne," he panted.

"Yes..." Bruce sighed.

"We got no warning, no-no-no nothing," Jim stuttered. "We-"

"It was him, wasn't it?" Bruce said, lifting his pale face from his shaking hands. "It was the Joker?"

"Of course it was," Jim said, shaking his head wearily as a Joker card fluttered by in the midmorning breeze. "We're getting as many people out as we can- there's only so much we can do-"

"What can I do?" Bruce said, sitting up and slicking his hair back from his face.

Jim mouthed incomprehensible things.

"Get me some gloves," Bruce said, standing and taking off his coat and tie, "I'm helping."

Jim pointed towards one of the fire trucks and Bruce strode off, rolling up his sleeves. Alfred took his master's place in the back seat of the car.

"He's a hell of a guy, Wayne," Jim said.

"You've no idea," Alfred said, rubbing his face.

Above them, helicopters wheeled around recording the chaos. Reporters screamed into microphones and cameramen leaned out of doors, heavy cameras balanced on their shoulders and fuzzy microphones hanging over their heads like huffy rain clouds.

Around them, emergency response vehicles sped from one spot to the other, putting out fires and pulling the injured from the wreckage. Others left laden with the dead.

Bruce Wayne joined the throng and started pulling office workers and advertising managers out from under smoking piles of concrete and steel.

About 15 miles away in a rundown, abandoned, dilapidated group home, the Joker was laughing at the images on the television screen.

/|\

Anthony and Carol looked up from their work. They were in English class, working on an essay about irony.

"Did you hear that?" Carol asked.

Anthony nodded and looked up at his teacher, who was staring out the window. Everyone else in class looked up from what they were doing and out the window. Someone gasped.

"Oh my God," Carol said.

She stood and walked to the window. Anthony followed her and grabbed her hand when he realized what he was looking at.

"Is that-?" he started.

"Wayne Enterprises," Carol finished.

"Oh my God," their teacher said.

Katie Boat, who was sitting in the back of the class stood up and ran to the window. Heath, the Australian foreign exchange student, walked to the window, too, and was soon joined by the rest of the class. The teacher joined the students. Everyone ducked outside and down the stairs, out on the campus. They saw it clearly now: Wayne Industries, or what was left of it, crumpling like a paper lantern to the ground, spitting fire in random directions and bending the way buildings shouldn't. Carol covered her mouth with her hand and Katie whimpered. Anthony and Heath just gawked with the rest of the class. Their teacher started crying.

/|\

Robert Maxwell Webber stared at his television and sank onto his couch. His niece had probably been dragged along to watch the hell that was going on there. He could have cried or screamed or hit something- or someone (preferably the Joker). He feared for Nancy. He was scared and angry and desperate for her.

Robert's phone rang.

**Jim**, it said.

"I'm leaving my apartment _right now_," he said as soon as he answered. "I'll get there as fast as I can."

"Thank you," said Jim Gordon, and hung up.

/|\

Mike's phone buzzed. He picked it up.

"Hello?" he said.

"Oh my God, Mike," came a very shaken voice.

"Now, now Carol," Mike said, "you don't have to call me God. Just Mike, please."

"Mike," said Carol, not laughing at Mike's lame joke, "it's gone."

"What's gone?" said Mike.

"Wayne Enterprises, Mike. The whole building. The Joker blew it up," said Carol shakily, fearfully. "Oh God, Mike, I'm scared. I'm really scared now."

"Tut-tut-tut," said Mike. "It's okay, Carol. You in class?"

"Ou-outside. I can see the smoke from here."

"I bet. Listen, see if you can go home. See if you and Anthony and Katie can go home."

"They're sending us all home. Everyone's being evacuated. The buses are running double-time. We're going home _now_."

"Okay. Good. Just stay home and lock the doors and stay safe, okay?"

"Okay. Anthony wants to talk to you-"

"Hey, Mike," said Anthony.

"Hey, man," Mike said. "You guys okay?"

"Yeah," Anthony sighed, making the connection hiss.

"Okay," Mike nodded. "You guys just stick together and stay safe, okay?"

"Okay," said Anthony. "What's that sound?"

"What sound?" Mike asked.

"That laughing," Anthony said suspiciously.

"Must be the TV," Mike said, closing the door to his room and backing towards the far corner. Bruce looked at him.

"Oh, okay," said Anthony. "Listen, I gotta go. We're leaving- there's a big rush and I don't wanna lose Carol-"

"Yeah, sure. I'll let you go," Mike agreed. "Talk to you later."

"Yeah. Later."

Mike hung up and hung his head.

-

The Joker sat on the couch and laughed. Nancy sat next to him and cocked her head to one side, observing the scene with interest. Though her eyes were focused in the television screen, her hands were busy dumping coins into the jar she had found the kitchen. Mike and Jason stood at the foot of the stairs and stared, horrified, into the living room. Mike stared at Nancy and wondered how she could bare watching the terrible things on the TV screen. Jason just stared at the screen.

"I can't..." he said. He walked back up the stairs. Mike followed him a short while later.

In their room, Mike questioned Bruce.

"How are you not..." he waved his arms around in search of the right word. Finally he found it, "How are you not _disturbed _by all this?"

"I just don't think about it," Bruce said. "Boss can think about it- he's crazy. Nancy can think about it- she's half-crazy-"

"_Nancy is _not _crazy_!" Mike yelled at him. "She's tired and sad and confused. She just needs to get over her mom and her dad and her friends and Eric and the school getting shot up... and all that other stuff and she'll be fine! She's _fine_ now! _Nothing's_ wrong with her!"

"A'ight," said Bruce, "but I'm just tellin' you now: Nancy ain't stable."

A red-faced Mike stormed out of the room and started pacing the hallway. Jason sat down on his bed.

"I agree with you," he said. "Nancy is a ticking time-bomb of bundled, suppressed emotion. A lot of that emotion is hatred or anger or confusion and grief and general teen angst."

"Mm-hmm," hummed Bruce, who pulled out a pocket knife and started carving on the bedpost.

"The Joker sort of supplies an outlet for all those emotions," Jason continued, "with all the over-the-top aggression and hyperactivity... sort of like a pleasure to pain balance. It's a sick and twisted sort of thing... and yes-" Jason turned to Bruce, who looked up from his work, "-eventually, I have a bad feeling, Nancy will snap. She's been overexposed to a lot of violence in a very short period of time and a lot of neglect over a very _long _period of time. The two will eventually come to a disturbing happy medium and we'll have another psycho on our hands."

Bruce, who had gone back to carving as soon as Jason said "eventually", looked back up and said, "You really put some thought into this, didn't choo?"

"You've no idea," sighed Jason, who leaned forward and started massaging his temples.

"What's up with Amy?" said Bruce, carving again.

"She was disgusted and disturbed by the sight of all those people and all the... general destruction," Jason waved his hand. "She started on about Nancy and how she was_ losing touch_ and all that. She's not stupid. She knows something's up with Nancy."

"I think it'd be kinda coo' if Nancy went wacko," smiled Bruce.

Jason gawked at him.

"Nah, nah. I don't mean it like that," said Bruce, waving a heavy hand. "I just think it'd be cool if Nancy, like... took on one of those different _personas _or whatever. She'd have her own look and ev'rything. The killing people thing'd be shitty... I don't know what I'm talkin' 'bout anymore."

He leaned away from the post and finished carving _BRUCE WAS HERE '08 _on it. Jason shook his head at him and got up.

"I'm going to... do... something," he sighed. He trudged out of the room and avoided Mike, who was still boiling.

-

Amy was crying. Jason walked into the girl's room and sat next to her. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and brought her closer. Amy shoved him away.

"This is your fault!" she screamed, standing and balling up her fists like she wanted to punch her brother. "I wanted to open up a computer repair shop, or a computer parts shop- but _no_! _You _signed me up to work with that _fucking psycho _downstairs! And now-" Amy stopped and choked on her tears, then went on, "-and now if I ever want a job in anything-" she gasped for air, "-I'm gonna have _this shit _on my resumé!" Amy stopped again and wiped at her face, smearing her eye makeup. "I swear to God, Jason, if I get arrested... I'm gonna tell them you forced me into this! I didn't sign up for this! I just-" Amy sobbed and let her face fall into her hands, "-I just wanna go home."

She slumped onto the bed across from Jason and started crying again. Jason sighed.

/|\

Nancy didn't know about Amy's bout of crying. Jason didn't mention it at dinner, Amy didn't mention it when everyone headed off to bed, and Nancy didn't ask about it. This might have hurt Amy's feelings, but Nancy wouldn't have known about it.

Amy fell asleep relatively quickly, tired from heaving her shoulders and choking on tears. Nancy laid awake for a while longer, wondering about how much she'd like to set fire to Dennis and Eric and all the bitches from school. She did fall asleep eventually, drifting into a very odd dream.

She was sitting in the living room, the TV screen filled with snow and the coffee table sitting in the corner in pieces, staring at her. Nancy, from her spot on the couch, looked at the coffee table.

"Hello," the table said.

Nancy blinked in her dream and said, "Hello."

The table's mouth was made of what used to be the table top, which had snapped in two when the table broke. The eyes were made of the legs, which rolled around, clunking; the pupils were two nails that stuck out straight from the wider tips of the legs.

"Do you think you could dispose of me properly? Sooner or later?" said the table, its eyes clunking around to look at her. "Sooner rather than later, obviously."

The table had a foreign accent.

"I'll try and get that done," she said. "Why are you talking to me?"

"Oh," the table chirped, "you're going mad."

"Am I?" Nancy said, looking at the TV. "I wasn't aware."

"No one's ever really _aware _of going mad," the table said slowly, "it just kind of... happens."

Nancy rounded on the table. "I'm not going crazy," she told it.

"Well," the table said, making a giant clatter as it attempted to shrug, though it didn't have any shoulders to do it with, "if you insist."

"I do," Nancy said. She crossed her arms and looked at the TV.

Victoria screamed at her from the screen. Her face was contorted, her eyes empty, her mouth gaping. She looked like one of the faces that pops up on screamer videos on the internet. She screamed and pulled away for breath. Someone slit her throat.

The image changed.

Eight girls were tied to chairs in a circle. Their hair was on fire, sparkling. They were all screaming and crying, their makeup running and their heads and hands shaking. A figure was holding a can of hairspray and a lighter away from himself, aiming

Change.

Eric was handcuffed and squirming on a concrete floor. A skinny figure loomed over him, carrying something heavy and blunt and already covered in browning flakes of coagulated blood. The figure lurked and Eric screamed.

Change.

Dennis Meek was bound and gagged on the floor of Nancy's living room. Someone was trying to scream, and Dennis was begging for something from the same skinny figure that had loomed over Eric. The figure was screaming at him. The other screaming voice was muted, as if held back by tape. Loud music was playing. The figure screamed again and started pounding Dennis in the gut with something heavy and blunt and dusty looking.

Blank.

"What about Gambol?" Nancy asked. "What happens to him? I want to know! Tell me!"

Nancy tried to stand, but her dreamy restraints wouldn't allow it. Instead, she focused on making the TV blow up or start smoking or sizzle and die, melt into the floor.

The TV spontaneously combusted. Nancy frowned at it.

"_Nancy._"

"Yes?"

"_What're you doing, babe?_"

"What?"

"_Nancy._"

-

The Joker watched Nancy walk out of her room and down the stairs. More interested in the fact that she was wandering around the house in her underwear than anything, he followed her. When he found her, she was sitting on the couch, staring intently at the broken remains of the coffee table in the corner. She started talking to it slowly, thickly.

"... Hello," Nancy said to it, "...I'll try and get that done. Why are you talking to me?... Am I? I wasn't aware..." She paused for a while and spoke again angrily a short while later, "I'm not going crazy... I do."

The Joker walked up behind her, quietly, and bent over to try and see her face. Her eyes were half-lidded and glazed over. He jerked away when she looked at the TV. She stared at it for a while grinning, then she scared him when she started shouting.

"What about Gambol? What happens to him? I want to know! Tell me!" she yelled at the TV. She stiffened and jerked forward a little, like she was trying to get up and change the channel on the TV.

"Nancy," the Joker said, bending over closer and nudging her shoulder.

"Yes?" Nancy said.

"What're you doing, babe?"

"What?" Nancy said. Her face changed and she suddenly looked confused.

"Nancy," the Joker tried again, firmer.

Nancy leaned back and she blinked awake. She looked around the room, then at him.

"Why'm I in the living room?" she asked. "It's cold," she added.

The Joker rolled his eyes at her and moved around the couch to pick her up. She wrapped her arms around his neck and laid her head against his chest.

"It didn't tell me what was gonna happ'n to Gamb'l," she slurred.

"What didn't?" the Joker asked.

"The TV," Nancy said, "or the table. We need to throw it out. It told me it wanted to be thrown out."

"Did it now?"

"Mmhmm."

"But I know what I'm gonna do to Victoria. And Eric and Dennis and those girls from school. Want me to tell you?"

"Sure, babe. In the morning."

The Joker kicked the door to Nancy's room open and laid her down in bed. Amy rolled over and glared it him. The Joker saw her and shoved her bed.

"What's that look for, weepy?" he snarled.

Amy stared at him like a deer caught in headlights, her eye makeup smeared and her mouth gaping.

The Joker threw one look back it Nancy and glowered at Amy as he stalked out of the room.

/|\

**You're going to hate me for the next chapter. Hope you liked this one anyway. **

**-Jess**


	43. Snap

**You're going to love this. **

/|\

Nancy woke up unusually early that morning and made her way into the kitchen to start some coffee. She decided against the coffee though, as soon as she looked at the coffee machine. She started boiling some water instead, then sat at the table and wondered what she was going to cook in the boiling water.

_Some hard boiled eggs would be nice_, she thought.

She set her head gently down on the dining table and sighed, replaying the night's events in her head. And she smiled. She turned her head so she was facing the counter and the pot of water, which hadn't started boiling yet.

"Vicky scared me last night," she said to herself, "with that screamer look she had going there. I liked Dennis and Eric's begging. That was-" she sighed, "-nice." Nancy blinked hard and stared at the little gas flame under the pot. It spit and hissed when something on the bottom of the pot melted and spattered against the flame. It reminded Nancy of the way fire sparkled when hairspray came into contact with it. "Like those bitches from school. Sparkled, sparkle, melt, melt, die." Nancy giggled and pressed her forehead against the tabletop. She yawned hugely and hugged herself against the cold draft that whipped around the kitchen from the window on the far side of the room.

Nancy sat up when the floor upstairs creaked. She waited for someone to come down the stairs, but when no one came, she stood and found some eggs in the refrigerator. She dropped them on the water with a plop. She heard the stairs creak.

"So..." said a low, slow voice from the doorway.

Nancy turned around and smiled at the Joker, who smirked at her.

"So..." he said again.

"You wanna hear about my dream now?" Nancy asked.

"Sure," the Joker grinned.

He pulled his jacket a little tighter around himself and sat down at the table.

Nancy sat, too, after a little while of staring at the eggs and making sure none of them had cracked.

"So..." the Joker said a third time, licking his lips and running his tongue along the inside of his cheek.

"So," Nancy said, "I was sitting in the living room, and... the coffee table started talking to me. It told me I was going crazy, and I told it I wasn't- 'cause I'm not." The Joker nodded, grinning, and motioned for her to continue. "And, so, I look at the TV 'cause... well it was there- and all of a sudden Victoria's on the screen. And she's screaming. And it scared me at first, cause she was all pale and her eyes and mouth were just like these empty, black pits. And when she's pulling back for air so she can start screaming again, this hand comes up and slits her throat-" the Joker blinked and smiled, "-and the blood goes everywhere. Then the screen changes like someone changed the channel or something. Now there's these girls that I know from school. Now- see... these girls don't like me at all. I dunno why. They're just _that kind of people_, if you know what I mean."

"I do," said the Joker, who was leaning forward and listening with rapt attention.

"Anyway," Nancy said, waving her last comment away like an annoying fly. "They're all tied to chairs in a circle... and they're on fire." Nancy stopped, looking up to gage the Joker's reaction- he was biting back a giggle. "And it's just their hair that's on fire. And they were all screaming... there was someone there, too. They had a can of something and a lighter, and they were holding them like they were gonna spray they girls with more fire..." Nancy stopped and sifted though her thoughts, tracing through her dream. "Then," she said abruptly, making the Joker blink, "the screen changed again. Eric was on the ground. I don't know where he was, but he was scared..." Nancy paused again and flashed back to the image on the screen in her dream. "He was begging and squirming on the floor, and there was another person there holding something... big and heavy looking... This all sounds kind of dumb, doesn't it?"

The Joker grinned and shook his head, his greasy hair swinging from side to side. "Nuh-uh, babe. Keep going."

Nancy smiled at him and went on. "The last one I saw was Dennis, and his was loud. You know, for a second I kind of thought that everyone in the house would wake up and come downstairs and find me staring at the TV, talking to the coffee table, you know- being crazy. Anyway, it was loud because there was music going in the background- and screaming. Dennis was screaming, and someone else was screaming, too. I don't know who it was, but it was like they were trying to scream with a _sock _in their mouth or something." Nancy laughed a little at the thought of someone trying to scream with a sock pressed against their face. "Anyway... where was I?"

"Dennis-" the Joker hinted, grinning.

"Oh, yeah. Dennis. He was on the floor like Eric -except it was in my living room-"

This made the Joker laugh, burying his face in his hands and giggling furiously. "In your living room?" He continued to chuckle as Nancy went on.

"He was in my living room, and the same person from the scene with Eric was there, and they were screaming, too. But they sound... _pissed_. Wha-... What's a stronger word for pissed?"

"Um," the Joker said.

"_Livid_. Yeah, that sounds better. Anyway... I just see everything blur, and all of a sudden Dennis is screaming and this other person's beating him in the gut with..."

"Something big and heavy looking?" the Joker finished.

"Yeah," Nancy sighed. "Then the screen went blank."

"That why you started yelling at the TV?" the Joker prodded, still leering.

Nancy shot a dangerous, tired look at him, then smiled and looked back up at her pot of water.

"How long does it take to cook hard boiled eggs?" she asked.

The Joker laughed at her and got up.

"Seriously!" Nancy called as the Joker walked up the stairs, still laughing.

/|\

It was past noon, around the time when the shadows of buildings slant and the alleyways are hidden from view; the sharp glare of the sun off of floor-to-ceiling windows causes a few fender-benders and road rage induced street fights. But it wasn't the road rage that was making Jonathan Crane sweat now in the late November chill, and it wasn't the fender-benders either. Jonathan Crane was sweating because two very large men had him in a very strong arm hold and were taking turns punching him in the gut as hard as they could. At the instruction of their employer of course.

"So..." Gambol started, turning Jonathan's Scarecrow mask over in his hands.

Next to him, attached to his arm, stood Victoria. She was taking great pleasure in Jonathan's pain. Gambol smiled at her, and her cheeks rose in an attempted smile behind her scarf in response.

"So..." Gambol started again.

Jonathan spat on the ground and his blue eyes glared up at the well dressed black man in front of him. At Victoria he glared, too, because she was the reason he was here now- on his knees in an alleyway, his arms in vice-like grips and his insides screaming. A few feet in front of him, his mask stared accusingly at him, blaming him for its current position.

"My lovely Victoria informs me you know where the Joker is - shall we say - making his living," Gambol smiled.

"So does she," Jonathan said, nodding at Victoria.

"Oh, she does," Gambol confirmed, smiling. "But what I would prefer is to either hear it from you and take pleasure in the fact that your betraying your... colleague, or hear the truth straight from my lovely's lips."

Victoria giggled. Jonathan, had he not been fighting the urge to vomit blood, would have faked a gag.

"Why not have her write it?" Jonathan suggested. "Because you're not getting anything out of me. Besides, knowing the Joker, he's probably already moved again..."

Gambol glanced at Victoria, who looked at him pitifully. Her yellowish eyes swam with desperate emotion, and Gambol smiled at her.

"I don't think so," Gambol said, nodding to one of his men.

The man grinned and reeled back, throwing his fist forward again and driving it into Jonathan's gut. Jonathan threw up when his stomach muscles gave a sudden jerk. Victoria and Gambol stepped back, Gambol grinning and Victoria sneering in disgust.

"I'm n-not telling you," Jonathan choked, spitting on the ground again.

One of Gambol's men pulled out a gun and pressed it against Jonathan's temple.

"Now, now, Sean," Gambol said, waving the man away, "we never kill the messenger."

Gambol wormed his arm out of Victoria's grip and knelt in front of Jonathan, far enough away to not kneel in vomit.

"Now," Gambol said, smacking Jonathan lightly in the head, "Scarecrow, I'm letting you live so you can take a message. You understand? You tell the Joker-" Gambol grabbed Jonathan's hair and yanked him around, "-that I'm after him. And when I find him, he's gonna wish he was never born. You understand? Scarecrow?"

Jonathan nodded and his eyes flashed momentarily at his mask, which was still in Gambol's unworthy hand.

_Give me my face you bastard._

Gambol stood and nodded to his men, who threw Jonathan to the ground and kicked him in the sides as they walked back to Gambol's Escalade. Gambol tossed the Scarecrow mask in a dumpster as he passed.

As the tires squealed away, Jonathan wobbled himself to a hunched position, leaning against the wall of a pawn shop. Quickly, desperately, he dashed to the dumpster and pulled out his mask, sweeping off the litter and dirt. He pulled it over his head and sank back to the ground, panting. After catching his breath and making sure nothing important was broken, he got to his feet again, pulled the mask off, shoved it in his coat pocket and limped out of the alley.

Donning his mask again as he stumbled into the gravel driveway of the Home, Scarecrow fell against the door and pounded on it with his fists. He whipped the mask off again and started coughing up blood. The door squealed open, and only by pulling his mask back on was he granted entrance by a very ruffled looking goon. Her makeup was smeared as if she'd been crying, and the look she gave him made him feel as he were to blame for something he didn't do. He fell against the couch, pulling his mask off as the Joker thundered down the stairs looking frustrated.

"What the hell happened to you?" he asked, circling the couch and eyeing Scarecrow's ragged appearance.

"Gambol," Scarecrow said, rubbing his stomach. "Can I use your phone? I'll need my doctor. I trust him."

"And I don't," the Joker said, seeming to finalize any arguments that might have ensued. "What happened?" It wasn't so much an expression of concern as it was a demand.

"They caught me off guard, cornered me, questioned me," Scarecrow started. "I didn't tell him anything," he quickly added when the Joker's head twitched in irritation. "They beat the hell out of me and left me in an alley."

Nancy stood at the foot of the stairs and listened. The Joker glanced up at her, then stared disdainfully back at Scarecrow. He sucked on the insides of his cheeks for a few seconds.

"Who was there?"

"Gambol, a few of his men, and a girl... he called her Victoria."

The Joker laughed. "That bitch."

Scarecrow gave him a questioning look and grunted in pain when one of his ribs rubbed against another.

"Please-" he started.

"C'mon upstairs, Scary," the Joker grinned, grabbing Scarecrow by the collar and pulling him up and off the couch. Scarecrow hissed between his teeth and swallowed the blood that welled up in his throat. Nancy stepped away from the stairs. She gave the Joker a maniac grin as he passed by. He grinned back and dragged Scarecrow up the stairs, grunting and hissing. Nancy took Scarecrow's place on the couch next to Mike, who was biting his lip and wringing his hands. Nancy cocked her head towards him, another grin crossing her face.

"I'm gonna kill Victoria," she said, then stared back down at the floor with a flat look.

Amy's eyes widened, and she looked at Jason, who returned the look. Bruce leaned back on the recliner and looked out at all of them. Nancy cast one look at the coffee table, which was still lying in pieces in the corner of the room, giggled, and got up, heading upstairs. Bruce waited for one of the doors to slam upstairs before speaking.

"That girl is not stable," he said simply.

Mike was brought to another boiling point. His face went red and he was on his feet before anyone could try and console him.

"NOTHING'S WRONG WITH HER! NOTHING! YOU FUCKIN' HEAR ME? NOTHING!" he screamed. "SHE'S JUST FINE. SHE'S TIRED AND-"

"That was your excuse last time!" Bruce yelled back, though not quite as hysterical.

"Shut up! You guys just shut up!"Amy screamed.

"YOU JUST THINK THERE'S SOMETHING WRONG! YOU'RE DELUSIONAL! YOU'RE THE CRAZY ONE!"

"Boss's gonna get pissed," Jason sighed to himself from the love seat.

"You listen to me white boy-"

"OH! WHITE BOY! THAT'S WHAT I AM NOW, AM I? WHITE BOY!"

"You're the delusional one!" Bruce rose from his seat, Mike took another step forward.

"FUCK YOU!"

"Shut the fuck up, guys!" Amy screamed.

Jason sighed and shook his head.

"Nancy's losin' it, man, and you know it! She's all twitchy and she talks to 'erself. Losin' it!" Bruce said. "You're just in denial. You go on and ask 'er. I bet she even knows she's goin' nuts! Go fuckin' ask 'er!"

Mike, who's voice had become tired and hoarse, kept yelling. "There's nothing wrong! You're just bein' an asshole!"

Nancy sat up in bed when her bedroom door opened. She had been going over her dream in her head and dozing, not paying attention to the hollering downstairs. Oblivious. Reality broke into her daydreaming when the door opened, however.

"Hey, babe," the Joker said, looking a little tense and agitated, "go shut them up, wouldja? They're pissin' me off."

"Sure, sure," Nancy smiled. She hopped off the bed and said, "I was thinking about my dream. We could do it, now. We could kill Victoria. Slit 'er throat and spill 'er guts and make 'er scream. Then we could do the rest. I was just thinking about that."

And though she could only see half of his face, Nancy could see the grin that tugged at his lips and stretched his scars.

"We could, huh? You wanna? Really? Just like your dream? Cut her throat-"

"But more though. We could think of more to do. I'll think about it," Nancy said as she neared the door.

"You do that," the Joker grinned. He touched her face as she slipped past him and smiled when she sighed.

He watched her walk down the stairs and turned back to his own room. Scarecrow sat panting in one of the wooden chairs, groping at his side and sweating.

"When are you going to let me call my doctor?" he groaned.

"Later," the Joker smiled.

"What's the matter with you? I haven't seen you this giddy since you told me about blowing up Wayne Enterprises."

"I've almost got her, Crow," the Joker giggled. "So close. She wants Vicky gone. She's dreaming stuff up. Sick stuff. Ooooh, yes. So, so close."

"Who? Nancy?" Scarecrow grunted. "I'm surprised you haven't kill her yet. You're not very patient."

The Joker just nodded.

"Has she had flashbacks? About the school?"

"Dunno. Sometimes I guess. Why?"

"Flashbacks like that cause psychotic breaks. Psychotic breaks lead to things like schizophrenia. It happens to college kids most of the time. People in their 20s and early 30s. I'd know..." Scarecrow tried for a laugh, but the motion caused his fractured ribs to grind against each other.

The Joker just nodded again and started rattling the knives in his pockets.

"Listen, as much as I love our little chats, and I really do, I'd really like to call my doctor," Scarecrow sighed. "You can have one of your people drive me out to my place and I won't bother you about it anymore."

"Yeah, sure, fine," the Joker nodded. He pulled a disposable phone out of his pocket and tossed it at Scarecrow, who caught it, if not fumbling a bit.

"You didn't tell him _anything_, did you? Not a _thing_?" the Joker asked, not looking up from the floor.

"Not a thing. I swear." Scarecrow said, shaking his head. "He can hurt me, but I know you would do worse. I'm not stupid."

The Joker grinned at him. "Oh, Jonny..." He started laughing.

"Doc?" Scarecrow said suddenly. "It's me- no, listen. I need you to meet me at my place... yes, the lab... downtown yes- no. Not that one. The nicer one. Hahaha. No... yes... I'm not sure- listen, I'll explain everything when I get there. Alright? Thank you."

Scarecrow ended the call and leaned back in his chair with a sigh, still sweating. The Joker left the room, glad to hear that the living room had gone quiet. He trotted down the stairs lazily and stopped at the foot of them.

"Hey, Tiny," he said. "Scary needs a ride. Oblige him."

Bruce nodded and got up from his place on the recliner. He glared at Mike as he walked by and stood to wait by the door.

"Where's Nancy?" the Joker asked, digging through his pockets for the van keys.

"She went back upstairs," Amy said. "She said she was feeling dizzy."

The Joker nodded and tossed Bruce the keys. He told Amy to get Scarecrow, who was fighting bouts of pain-enduced nausea. He was feeling a little dizzy, too. Amy walked upstairs, shooting a venomous look over her shoulder as she went. The Joker looked up at her and smiled. Amy shuddered and nearly tripped. The smile melted into a sneer as Amy vanished.

For a moment, there was silence, some scuffling as Amy helped Scarecrow out of the room, and down the hallway. Then, there was a scream.

Upstairs, Amy was passing her own room -where Nancy was laying in bed with a throbbing headache- when she stopped at a sound. It was a sob. Scarecrow heard it, too. He looked at Amy, who glanced at him, then back at the room. The door, with its old, rusty hinges, creaked open slightly, then slammed against the wall. Nancy tripped out, her face awash with tears and flushed.

"Amy!" she screamed. "Amy! Eric's here! He wants to cut me open and spill my guts! Amy-!"

Amy gaped and stepped away.

"He's gonna hurt me, Amy! Eric's here and so's Victoria! They wanna kill me, Amy! You have to help me!" Nancy wailed, her eyes rolling around the hallway, hands clapped over her head, squishing down her usually spiky hair. She stepped forward and grabbed Amy's wrists. "Please help me, Amy! I'm so scared. The guys with the guns are coming, too! They're gonna kill me! And you! And Scarecrow and Joker and Mike and everyone else! The table said so! And..."

Nancy sobbed and fell to her knees, dragging Amy down with her. Scarecrow leaned against the wall and let himself smile. There was silence downstairs.

"And you're helping them, aren't you, Amy? You're fucking helping them! You bitch! I'll fucking kill you!" Nancy threw Amy to the ground and pounced on her. "You're with Eric and Victoria and the guys with guns! I'll fucking kill you! I'LL KILL YOU! YOU KILLED JEREMY AND ALL THE REST OF THE PEOPLE AT MY SCHOOL DIDN'T YOU? _WELL FUCK YOU! _"

There was a rush from downstairs as everyone moved to the stairs.

"Nancy!" Amy screamed frantically. "Nancy! Stop it! You're hurting me-!"

"That's right I'm hurting you, you bitch! I'll kill you! The table told me to! I'll fucking kill you! Before you kill me!"

Amy goggled at Scarecrow. "Help me!"

Scarecrow laughed and clutched at his sides. Nancy wrapped her long fingers around Amy's throat and squeezed. Amy made a noise that sounded like _Gak! _and started swatting Nancy in the chest.

"I'll kill you before you can find Eric and kill me! Then I'll kill him and Victoria and Dennis! And I'll fucking kill Gambol, too!" Nancy screamed, smiling.

At the top of the stairs, Mike, Bruce, and Jason had stopped and stared. The Joker had stopped, too, but only for a second. He started laughing. Amy looked up at him and choked. He laughed harder and doubled over. Scarecrow's laughter had died down to a harsh chuckle as the pain in his torso built up.

"I'LL KILL MOMMY, TOO! SHE WON'T FUCKING HIT ME ANYMORE! I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU, AMY! 'CAUSE YOU'RE WITH ERIC AND HE WANTS ME DEAD AND SO DOES VICKY- THAT FUCKING WHORE!"

Then, Mike started screaming.

"Nancy!" he hollered. "NANCY! LET HER GO! LET AMY GO!"

Nancy looked up at him, eyes wide and teeth bared like a mad dog.

"FUCK! YOU!" she screamed.

Mike moved forward to end the fight, but the Joker grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and tugged him back.

"You'll watch," he said, grinning.

Amy's lips went blue and she reached up to scratch Nancy's face. He nails dug deep into Nancy's pale, watery face. Nancy snarled and loosened her grip on Amy's throat. Amy took on one long gasp of air before Nancy lifted her head off the ground and slammed it against the floor.

The Joker laughed and slapped Bruce on the back.

"Aw, go break it up, Tiny," he said, then started laughing again.

Jason ran forward, too, pulling at Amy's arms. Scarecrow had crumpled to the floor by now, and the laughter had stopped all together. He was moaning in pain now. Bruce peeled Nancy away, kicking and screaming. Jason pulled Amy away and tripped over his own feet. He held Amy's head in his lap and patted her hair while she coughed. Nancy, meanwhile, was trying to turn around and claw at Bruce's face. He held her at arm's length and looked helplessly at the Joker, who was still laughing.

"Boss! What do I do with 'er?" Bruce yelled over Nancy's screaming.

The Joker stopped laughing long enough to say, "Put 'er in my room," then went on laughing.

Mike stared in shock around the hallway. He caught Bruce's eye and gaped. Bruce scowled at him and walked Nancy down the hallway. She was a little tired now, and her voice was hoarse and crackly.

"I'll kill you, too, Bruce," she growled.

"Uh-huh," Bruce said.

He shoved her into the Joker's room and slammed the door as Nancy turned and tried to jump back through it. He looked down the hall and shook his head. The Joker had stopped laughing a little and was just giggling now; Mike was staring around hopelessly and helplessly at everyone; Jason had Amy's head in his lap and was cooing to her softly, asking if she was okay; and Scarecrow was hunched against one wall groaning and sweating and groping at his sides.

"Hey, Tiny!" the Joker called down the hall.

"Since when was I Tiny?" Bruce mumbled to himself quietly.

"Yeah, boss?"

"Take Scary home," the Joker smiled.

Bruce nodded and complied. He drove a chuckling Scarecrow to his apartment/lab and drove back to the Home. It was a relatively quiet ride.

/|\

**I apologize. It's been much too long since I've updated. Months, I think it's been. Thank you for staying with me.**

**-Jess**


End file.
